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Reported Princess Kate sightings fail to quell speculation about her health after photo editing scandal
London — British tabloids reported Sunday that Catherine, the Princess of Wales, was spotted in public for the first time since she disappeared more than two months ago for what Kensington Palace said was an unspecified abdominal surgery and recovery. The unconfirmed sighting comes amid ongoing controversy over Kate’s wellbeing and whereabouts.
The Sun tabloid newspaper said Kate was seen at a farm shop near her family’s home in Windsor, west of London, on Saturday, quoting onlookers as saying she appeared “happy, relaxed and healthy.”
On Sunday, the Sun reported Kate and her husband Wiliam, the Prince of Wales, watched their three children play sports.
No photos or video clips were published of the royal couple in either scenario.
Speculation over Kate’s health persists
In January, Kensington Palace said Kate would be undergoing planned abdominal surgery and taking time to recover in private. It said there would be no updates on her health as she recuperated, but then on Britain’s Mother’s Day in March, the couple released an image of Kate and her children that had clearly been doctored.
International photo agencies withdrew the image from their platforms, some even removing Kensington Palace from their list of trusted sources. Kate admitted “editing” the photo in a subsequent social media post, but Kensington Palace said it would not be releasing anything further amid numerous calls for an original image to be provided.
“Anybody that tells you that their media operation is flawless would be kidding you,” Julian Payne, an expert in crisis public relations who used to be a spokesperson for King Charles III and Queen Camilla, told CBS News on Monday. “Of course mistakes get made.”
Payne said he believed the scandal over the publication of the edited photo of the Princess of Wales and her children was unlikely to change how the palace handles providing updates about her health.
“This is a Mother’s Day image. It was taken by the Prince of Wales, that was then edited by the Princess of Wales and then given to her press team. It’s not surprising that the team simply said, ‘Thank you very much,’ and shared that photo,” Payne said. “I think that the media operation were very clear that the Princess of Wales was not going to provide a running commentary on her health. She’s cleared up that one issue around the photograph. Now, it’s for other people to decide whether that’s enough information, but it is not, because the institution is sitting there not knowing what to do. You talk to those people who are doing those jobs; They have taken a position. They’re holding that position.”
“It’s the institution where the focus should be”
While the public may view members of the royal family like Hollywood celebrities, Payne said the royals feel very differently about their roles, and this affects how they choose to share information about their lives with the public.
“When we think about ‘Hollywood celebrities’, they understand that they are the brands. They need the media attention in order to be as successful as they can be,” Payne told CBS News. “That doesn’t translate into the royal family, where their view as the individual members of the family is: It’s the institution where the focus should be. They contribute to that work, but they should also be able to protect a little bit of their own private lives at the end of the day as well.”
Payne said rather than responding to questions about Kate’s health, her team at Kensington Palace will most likely hold their course and refuse to provide any updates until she resumes her public duties.
Then, “people will begin to replace what we have now, which is a huge amount of speculation, with the reality of a working Princess of Wales once more,” Payne said.
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked in New York City on Friday night, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 9 p.m. on Second Avenue near East 96th Street on the Upper East Side, according to the New York City Police Department.
Police said officers were sent to the scene after an assault was reported. When officers arrived, police say they found a 20-year-old man suffering from facial injuries and a 70-year-old man who had head pain. Both victims were taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the former governor said the two were attacked while “taking a walk around the block near their home by some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson.”
The spokesperson said that they were injured “but were able to fight off their attackers.”
Both were taken to Cornell Hospital “as a precaution,” he added.
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The 70-year-old Paterson, a Democrat, served as governor from 2008 to 2010, stepping into the post after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal. He made history at the time as the state’s first-ever Black and legally blind governor.
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A 17-year-old boy was critically injured and a person is in custody after a gunman opened fire on a SEPTA bus in North Philadelphia Friday evening, police said.
At around 6:15 p.m., Philadelphia police were notified about a shooting on a SEPTA bus traveling on Allegheny Avenue near 3rd and 4th streets in North Philadelphia, Inspector D F Pace told CBS News Philadelphia.
There were an estimated 30 people on the bus at the time of the shooting, Pace said, but only the 17-year-old boy was believed to have been shot. Investigators said they believe it was a targeted attack on the teenager and that he was shot in the back of the bus at close range.
According to Pace, the SEPTA bus driver alerted a control center about the shooting, which then relayed the message to Philadelphia police, who responded to the scene shortly.
Officers arrived at the scene and found at least one spent shell casing and blood on the bus, but no shooting victim, Pace said. Investigators later discovered the 17-year-old had been taken to Temple University Hospital where he is said to be in critical condition, according to police.
CBS Philadelphia
Through their preliminary investigation, police learned those involved in the SEPTA shooting may have fled in a silver-colored Kia.
Authorities then found a car matching the description of the Kia speeding in the area and a pursuit began, Pace said. Police got help from a PPD helicopter as they followed the Kia, which ended up crashing at 5th and Greenwood streets in East Mount Airy. Pace said the Kia crashed into a parked car.
The driver of the crashed car ran away but police were still able to take them into custody, Pace said.
Investigators believe there was a second person involved in the shooting who ran from the car before it crashed. Police said they believe this person escaped near Allegheny Avenue and 4th Street, leaving a coat behind.
According to Pace, police also found a gun and a group of spent shell casings believed to be involved in the shooting in the same area.
“It’s very possible that there may have been a shooting inside the bus and also shots fired from outside of the bus toward the bus,” Pace said, “We’re still trying to piece all that together at this time.”
This is an active investigation and police are reviewing surveillance footage from the SEPTA bus.