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Iowa officer shot and killed while making an arrest; suspect arrested in Minnesota
A police officer in northern Iowa was fatally shot while making an arrest on Wednesday night, authorities said. The Iowa Department of Public Safety identified him as 33-year-old Kevin Cram, an officer in the city of Algona who had worked in law enforcement for a decade.
The suspected shooter, Kyle Ricke,43, was found and arrested near Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, just before midnight on Thursday, the public safety department said in a news release. Ricke is charged with first-degree murder in Kossuth County, Iowa, and will be extradited there at a later date.
The shooting happened at around 8 p.m. on Wednesday, while Cram was on patrol duty in Algona. He pursued Ricke after an active warrant was put out for the man’s arrest, according to the state. The warrant for harassment was issued by authorities in Palo Alto County, which is about 25 miles west of Algona. Iowa Public Safety said Cram “knew of a possible location for Ricke and headed to that area.”
When Cram found Ricke and told him that he was going to be placed under arrest, Ricke shot the officer, according to the public safety department. He screamed profanities at Cram after he shot him, the criminal complaint for first-degree murder said. Cram was transported by emergency medical services to Kossuth Regional Health Center and pronounced dead.
Ricke was charged with third-degree harassment in August, CBS affiliate KCCI reported, citing a criminal complaint detailing Ricke’s alleged conduct toward an ex in dozens of text messages as well as in emails. He was arrested and charged on Aug. 27, and released from the Kossuth County Jail two days later after posting bond, according to the station. Ricke had multiple arrests and court violations, according to online court records.
Cram worked as an officer at the Algona Police Department since 2015, according to the public safety department. He was previously employed for two years at the Nora Springs Police Department.
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Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch in path of Lake Fire as it burns more than 16,000 acres in Santa Barbara County
Firefighters are continuing an uphill battle in Santa Barbara County, where the Lake Fire swelled to more than 16,000 acres over the weekend.
The blaze was first reported on Friday at around 3:45 p.m. near Zaca Lake and Saint Lucia Road, according to Cal Fire.
After more than 48 hours, the fire has consumed 16,452 acres and remains just 8% contained with more than 600 firefighters currently engaged in the firefight. On top of ground units, 10 helicopters and numerous other water-dropping aircraft are assisting with the ongoing suppression efforts.
Not only are they dealing with exceedingly dry conditions, crews are also forced to work with the sweltering heat wave that has swathed most of Southern California in triple degree temperatures over the weekend.
So far one structure has been damaged and one injury has been reported, Cal Fire said. Among the homes threatened by the rapidly spreading flames is Michael Jackson’s former residence, the famed Neverland Ranch, located in the 5000 block of Figueroa Mountain Road. He owned the 2,700-acre property from 1988 until his death in 2009.
An evacuation order was issued late Saturday evening for Figueroa Mountain Road to Sawmill Basin, including Tunnel Road and the Figueroa Campground.
Additionally, evacuation warnings have also been issued for Figueroa Mountain Road to Chamberlin Ranch and Zaca Lake Road, Foxen Canyon Road and the area south of the Sisquoc River, firefighters said.
It remains unclear what sparked the massive fire, which is now the second largest reported in California since the start of 2024.
The Lake Fire is one of several large wildfires currently burning in California. The Thompson Fire, currently raging in Butte County near Chico, has torched more than a dozen homes, while the Basin Fire near Fresno has engulfed more than 14,000 acres.
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Paramount Global to merge with Skydance Media
The turbulent courtship between Paramount Global-parent National Amusements and Skydance Media is back on less than a month after the sides abruptly ended merger talks.
Paramount, owner of Paramount Pictures movie and television studios, the CBS television network and CBS News, announced in a news release that it is merging with Skydance, an entertainment business founded by David Ellison, son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison. Paramount also owns the Paramount+ streaming service, Nickelodeon, BET, MTV, Comedy Central and other media brands.
The transaction resolves months of speculation around the future of Paramount, which also reportedly attracted a $26 billion bid from a consortium including Sony Pictures and private equity firm Apollo Global Management. A range of prominent media and entertainment industry executives were also said to have expressed interest in a possible deal for Paramount.
Under the terms of the latest deal, Skydance would pay $2.4 billion for National Amusements, which controls 77% of the voting shares for Paramount, while shareholders with non-voting stock will receive $15 per share or one share of non-voting stock in the new company.
The deal also gives other potential bidders for Paramount 45 days to submit a competing offer, an apparent effort to appease shareholders who felt Skydance’s initial bid undervalued their stake in the media company.
Uniting old and new Hollywood
The deal unites Paramount — a storied movie studio dating back to 1912 that is known for film classics such as “Titanic,” “The Godfather” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” as well as franchises including “Star Trek” and “Mission Impossible” — with a relative newcomer to the entertainment industry. Since David Ellison launched Skydance in 2010, the company has produced or co-produced hit films and TV shows including “Top Gun: Maverick” and the “Reacher” streaming series.
For Shari Redstone, controlling shareholder of National Amusements, the deal brings to a close her family’s long stewardship of Paramount, which was built on the foundation laid by her late father, entertainment mogul Sumner Redstone. In recent years, that effort has focused on growing Paramount’s streaming footprint, along with the continued expansion of its core network TV, cable and movie businesses.
In its most recent quarter, Paramount reported an operating loss of $417 million on revenue of $7.6 billion, compared with a loss of $1.2 billion on revenue of $7.2 billion in the year-ago period. Skydance, which is privately held, expects its annual revenue to reach $1 billion in 2024, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The merger with Skydance follows what has been a delicate negotiation in which Paramount executives sought to balance the interests of investors who own the company’s voting shares — which are primarily controlled by Redstone — and investors with non-voting stock. The latter are represented by large institutional investors such as Berkshire Hathaway and Vanguard, according to financial data firm FactSet.
The merger also follows the April 29 departure of former Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish, who was replaced by an Office of the CEO led by three division chiefs: George Cheeks, president and CEO of CBS; Chris McCarthy, president and CEO of Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios; and Brian Robbins, president and CEO of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon.
After the initial deal to combine National Amusements and Skydance collapsed on June 11, Paramount’s new leadership disclosed plans to cut costs by $500 million, explore a joint venture or other possible partnerships for Paramount+, and sell non-core assets. It is uncertain how that blueprint could change under Skydance’s watch.
The sale of Paramount also highlights ongoing consolidation within the media space as industry stalwarts like Paramount and CBS seek to compete with much larger competitors, including technology and entertainment companies.
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