A Tennessee woman is fiercely opposing her ex-husband’s potential early parole, determined to keep him in prison after he attempted to take her life on three separate occasions.

Fred Wortman, a former attorney, was handed a 30-year prison sentence back in 2015 for the failed murder plot against Staci Jones.

Wortman confessed to taking devious actions to harm Jones, including poisoning her toothpaste, planning a hired hit, and enlisting a fellow inmate to attack the mother of his three children during their divorce proceedings.

Now, Wortman is once again seeking an early release, facing the parole board for a second attempt on September 9, during the 11 years since his incarceration began.

In response, Jones has been proactive in her efforts to keep him imprisoned. She launched an online petition, which had already amassed 8,400 signatures by Wednesday afternoon, demonstrating significant public support for her cause.

‘His crimes were deliberate, calculated, and repeated. More than a decade later, the trauma inflicted on our family remains,’ the petition reads. 

Jones is worried that Wortman has not changed and that if he is released he would try to kill her again. 

‘We don’t know if he’ll try again. He was pretty persistent before and, you know, not wanting me to be here and, I don’t know that he’s changed. I don’t know,‘ Jones told WREG.

During Wortman’s trial, the court heard how he first used a syringe to inject a plant-based chemical called aconitum into his wife’s toothpaste.

In large doses, the substance can cause death from paralysis of the heart, while smaller amounts can cause a burning sensation, dizziness, headaches and difficulty breathing. 

Jones ingested a small amount after brushing her teeth and described feeling a burning feeling in her mouth before developing a migraine.

‘They believe because they found syringes with his things that he had put it in the toothpaste kind of deeper. And so I wasn’t getting a full amount,’ Jones told WREG.

One of the couple’s children also became sick after using the toothpaste, Jones claimed.

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At Wortman’s sentencing hearing in 2015, prosecutors said his boss noticed he had been using a work computer to search for tips on how to hire a hitman by paying in Bitcoin and how to poison someone.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation had an agent pose as a hitman to snare him.

He paid the agent, told her his wife’s address, when she would be home and left potential murder weapons around the couple’s $400,000 house.

While awaiting trial on two attempted murder charges, he then tried to pay a fellow inmate to kill his wife. 

He admitted two counts of attempted first-degree murder and one count of solicitation of first-degree murder and was given a 30-year sentence with eligibility for parole after he served 30 percent of his time.

Wortman previously applied for parole after just four years, ‘because of good behavior and good standing and time reduced,’ Jones said.

His request was denied in 2019 and the parole board said they would not reexamine the case for another seven years. 

Jones told WREG that her three children were young when their father attempted to have her killed and that they are now adults. 

She said that her two daughters and son support her efforts to keep Wortman behind bars. 

The mother added that the children were ‘well protected’ and have had no contact with their father, but she believes that if he were to be released, the first thing he would do is try to speak to them.

She encouraged others to sign the petition not just for her own safety, but that of the general public. 

‘I don’t want him to be roaming the streets and having freedom to do what he wants to do. Cause it’s a scary thought,’ Jones said. 

Bryan Kohberger, convicted for the chilling murder of four University of Idaho students, has secured two court days next year to pursue post-conviction relief. This comes after he surprisingly withdrew his guilty plea, which he had made a year prior in connection to the brutal stabbings.

Judge Steven Hippler, who originally accepted Kohberger’s guilty pleas in July 2025, has scheduled a status conference on June 3, 2027, followed by an evidentiary hearing slated for June 17, according to a court order issued on Wednesday.

Despite the prosecution’s request to have Kohberger’s petition dismissed without discussion, the judge has opted to move forward with these proceedings.

In a deal made in July 2025, Kohberger confessed to murdering Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin, thus avoiding the death penalty. This plea agreement was pivotal in determining his fate at the time.

A year later, he asked to withdraw his guilty pleas and proclaimed his innocence in a petition for post-conviction relief.

Kohberger, in a handwritten petition on July 27, 2026, claimed that he was “convinced to falsely confess,” by his high-profile defense team of Anne Taylor, Elisa Massoth and Bicka Barlow. He alleged that they failed to tell him about “exculpatory discovery” — hair found at the scene that was not tested for DNA. It was excluded as Kohberger’s through a physical analysis.

His new attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

BRYAN KOHBERGER APPOINTED NEW LAWYER AFTER IDAHO MURDERS CASE COSTS TAXPAYERS OVER $8 MILLION

Police found his DNA on a knife sheath recovered from the crime scene, in a bed with two of the victims, according to authorities. They also tracked his vehicle coming and going, and forensic investigators were prepared to testify about how, although he shut his phone off during the murders, the evidence suggested he drove to and from the crime scene anyway. 

Separately, Sy Ray, a former expert witness working for Kohberger’s defense team, last month alleged that there is additional damaging evidence that investigators hadn’t introduced before Kohberger’s guilty plea.

Hippler sentenced him to four consecutive terms of life without the possibility of parole, plus another 10 years.

The plea deal required Kohberger to waive his right to appeal, however, that doesn’t block him from seeking post-conviction relief, which could potentially reopen the case or result in a new trial.

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador told News Media shortly after Kohberger’s petition was filed that his office is “ready to do whatever is necessary to ensure justice is fully carried out.” 

Stan Wawrinka is set to make at least one more appearance at Flushing Meadows.

At 41, Wawrinka’s professional tennis journey took an unexpected turn this week. He was initially missing from the list of wild-card entries for his final U.S. Open, creating surprise among fans and players alike.

Reports surfaced over the weekend, indicating that his name was absent from those granted wild-card access to the tournament, which kicks off this Sunday.

This news caught many off guard because major tournaments like the Grand Slams typically aim to spotlight captivating narratives through their wild-card choices. A final appearance by the former U.S. Open champion in New York seemed an obvious pick.

The omission prompted Wawrinka to share an emotional farewell to the prestigious event where he claimed victory in 2016, defeating Novak Djokovic in a thrilling four-set final.

“When I first arrived in New York from a small farming village in Switzerland, everything felt too big
The city. The noise.The energy,” Wawrinka posted on social media. “The crowds. The lights💥. But year after year New York slowly became one of my favorite places in the world🌎🙌🏻 This city challenged me. It pushed me. It brought something out of me that few places ever could⚡️ I experienced some of the strongest emotions of my career here. The battles, the late nights, the incredible atmosphere, the love from the crowd…memories that will stay with me forever 🙏🏻💭🗽

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“Winning the US Open, in the city that never sleeps, will forever be one of the greatest moments of my life 🏆🌇 Thank you, New York🗽Thank you, @usopen 🎾 Thank you to every single fan who supported me, pushed me, believed in me and shared all these emotions with me over the years🙏🏻🫶🏻 Forever grateful. Forever New York🗽”

Now, New York will get a chance to repay that love.

Wawrinka’s fortunes changed when American Patrick Kypson withdrew from the event and allowed U.S. Open organizers to offer him a spot.

Wawrinka participated in the first three Grand Slams of the season, reaching the third round in Australia before opening-round exits at the French Open and Wimbledon.

The Swiss native spent his prime battling Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer — the sport’s Big Three that likely kept him from more Grand Slam glory. Still, Wawrinka has three to his name coming between 2014-16 — with triumphs in Melbourne and Paris to go along with Queens.

Now, Wawrinka will get one more chance at an unlikely run.

He will find out his opponent Thursday when the U.S. Open does its draw.

A wave of grief swept across fans and fellow actors alike on Wednesday as they learned of the passing of iconic actor Tim Curry, who has died at the age of 80.

Famed for his unforgettable role as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the cult hit The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Curry passed away peacefully at his Los Angeles residence on Tuesday night, as confirmed by his manager.

For over ten years, Curry bravely battled serious health challenges, most notably a severe stroke he suffered in 2012. Authorities have indicated that there is no suspicion of foul play.

In a heartfelt Instagram post, Carol Burnett, who starred alongside Curry as his character’s sister in the 1982 film adaptation of Annie, shared cherished memories of their collaboration.

Reflecting on their time together in “Annie,” the 93-year-old comedian wrote, “We shared a wonderful bond working together. He embodied the art of playing lovable villains like no other. He was a cherished friend, and having had the chance to know him was truly a blessing.”

She included a clip from the picture of the pair of them and their castmate Bernadette Peters performing their showstopping number Easy Street. 

Luke Evans, who played Frank-N-Furter in the latest Broadway revival of The Rocky Horror Show until Sunday, shared a letter he wrote Curry three weeks ago.

‘Dear Tim, With only three weeks left before I finally hang up the fishnets and heels, I wanted to send you a note,’ the The Hobbit star began.

‘Although we’ve never met, you’ve been part of this journey from the very beginning. Every actor who puts on Frank inevitably walks into a conversation that started with you, and I’ve felt that every single night,’ Evans confessed.

Being compared to you has been one of the greatest compliments I’ve ever received, even though it’s a comparison no one could ever hope to live up to. There is, and always will be, only one Tim Curry,’ he continued.

‘I’ve never tried to recreate what you did. That would be impossible. I simply hoped to honour the extraordinary character you brought to life, while finding my own way through him,’ Evans explained in his note.

‘As this chapter comes to an end, I just wanted to say thank you. For your fearless performance, for creating something so enduring, and for inspiring generations or actors to be a little braver than they thought they could be.’

He concluded: I hope, wherever you are, you’d approve of one more Frank having the time of his life in those heels. With enormous admiration, Luke x.’

Rob Schneider, one of Curry’s co-stars in his beloved 1992 release Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, shared his condolences on X, formerly Twitter.

‘Gutted. The sensational character actor, Tim Curry has left the stage,’ he wrote. ‘A truly gifted performer of stage and screen, his one eyebrow could say more than most actors entire bodies. I am grateful to have the rare gift of watching him work, he made you better just standing near him.’

Michael McKean, who co-starred with Curry in the 1985 crime comedy Clue, expressed relief at the conclusion of his friend’s punishing health decline.

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‘My last conversation with Tim Curry was about life and love and laughter,’ he wrote on X. ‘The grim physical state he found himself in has now ended, a blessing. Our blessing was that we had Tim Curry in our lives. RIP, my friend.’

Ben Stiller, who guest-starred on a 2002 episode of McKean’s sitcom Primetime Glick, replied to his tweet with a string of blue heart emojis.

Curry, who played Long John Silver in the 1996 film Muppet Treasure Island, received a glowing encomium on the children’s franchise’s official Instagram page.

‘Few humans have earned the title of honorary Muppet more than the legendary Tim Curry,’ the post read. ‘As a performer he was unparalleled – witty, charming, unnerving, and deeply funny. We will always consider it one of our greatest treasures to have been part of Long John Silver’s crew. Thank you for everything, Tim.’

Ice Cube’s son O’Shea Jackson Jr, who played his father in the 2015 biopic Straight Outta Compton, tweeted: ‘Rip Dolly Parton. Rip Tim Curry.’

‘And the blows keep coming,’ wrote Elaine Hendrix, who acted with Curry in the 1996 romantic comedy Lover’s Knot, also featuring Dirty Dancing star Jennifer Grey.

‘I worked with Tim Curry in the 90s. He was THE kindest man,’ Hendrix recalled, alongside a pair of throwback snaps with him. ‘I adored him up close and from a far since discovering “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” while I was in High School. I was a huge fan of him! What a talent. What a gentleman. What an honor. RIP Tim.’

Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger’s daughter Ireland Baldwin shared her grief over both Parton and Curry in an emotional Instagram post.

‘Two of my biggest inspirations passed away at 80,’ wrote Ireland. ‘Crazy how their presence as performers led me to believe that they are immortal and couldn’t possibly ever be gone. Fly HIGH above this crazy world.’

Among Curry’s highest-profile stage roles was as King Arthur in Spamalot, the Broadway musical adaptation of the 1975 picture Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Eric Idle, an original member of Monty Python who wrote the book, music and lyrics of Spamalot, memorialized Curry by posting a throwback photo with him to X.

‘Very sad to see the passing of Tim Curry, our first King Arthur,’ wrote Idle, 83. ‘A fine man, singer, actor, host and gardener. He will be missed.’

Acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro retweeted a post announcing Curry’s death and responded by writing simply: ‘Goodnight Sweet Myth….’ 

CHICAGO (WLS) — In a tragic turn of events, Shedd Aquarium announced Wednesday that one of the beluga whales they rescued from a Canadian marine park has died unexpectedly.

The whale, a 23-year-old female named Peekachu, had only been under the aquarium’s care for a few weeks since her rescue.

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Peekachu arrived as part of a pod of eight rescued female belugas, all relocated from a shuttered marine park in Canada that had been inactive for nearly two years, according to Shedd Aquarium.

Initially, Peekachu seemed to be in thriving condition, engaging socially and feeding alongside her companions.

However, when Shedd’s veterinary team conducted routine blood tests on Tuesday, they discovered Peekachu was dehydrated and required immediate supportive care.

On Tuesday evening, as she was given medicine and fluids, the whale died suddenly.

“Losing any animal is immensely difficult. From the outset of this rescue, we understood each animal would be navigating a significant transition and that their complete health picture, including conditions that may have developed over time, could only become clearer through ongoing assessment and care,” the Shedd said.

The Shedd is helping to re-home 30 beluga whales from the Canada marine park.

Others are going to Atlanta, San Antonio, San Diego, and Spain.

The belugas can be up to 15-feet long and weigh up to 3,300 pounds.

Dr. Karisa Tang is the lead veterinarian and vice president of Animal Health at the Shedd Aquarium. She says they were asked to help out.

“All of these facilities in the United States and Spain have decades of experience working with and caring for belugas. And we have experience in transferring them. No one has experience in transferring 30 like this. You know, this is an unprecedented event. But in all the experience that all these facilities have, we’re able to combine all that in the biggest group project any of us have probably ever done,” Tang said.

Tang added that the moves are “very safely done, under a lot of really strict schedules and a lot of really complicated spreadsheets and logistics.”

All of the planning for these moves began back in January, said Charlie Jacobsma, the aquarium’s director of animal behavior and training. That was the first time Shedd staffers went to Canada.

“And we were really evaluating if a rescue plan was feasible. We wanted to make sure we were doing what was best for these animals,” Jacobsma said.

Over multiple visits, Jacobsma said, they interviewed the staff at the marine park in Canada and got to understand the operations there.

“When we do a transport like this, every single animal is individual. So, we really have to make sure that we’re doing what’s best for that animal, from the size of the transport container, to the size of the structure they’re in. Everything is planned out. And then we have contingencies with those plans as well,” Jacobsma said.

The fallout from the video has been significant. Romano, the woman at the heart of the controversy, has been relieved from her duties by the magazine for which she was credentialed to report on the trial. Her behavior in the courtroom has sparked widespread discussion, triggering millions of views on social media and mentions in numerous news outlets.

But why was Romano at the trial in the first place? Vanity Fair confirmed her presence was credentialed due to her personal connection with Clancy, further blurring the lines between professional distance and personal involvement.

Images from the trial captured Romano, clad in a green dress, smiling and winking during the proceedings, an act caught live on the trial’s broadcast feed. The footage, provided by Court TV through a pool camera, continues to circulate widely, drawing ongoing commentary and examination.

In a statement sent to Fox News, Vanity Fair said, “We were interested in the prospect of a personal essay by Brittany Romano about her experience growing up with Lindsay Clancy. Yesterday, after clear conflicts with our editorial standards and processes, we informed Romano that we were not moving forward with her essay and informed the court that she is no longer credentialed by Vanity Fair.”

In a lengthy statement posted to Instagram on Tuesday, Romano wrote in part:

“A smile is not a crime. Telling a woman to slit her wrists is.

“For two years I have fought to cover the Lindsay Clancy case honestly, because at its center is a mother accused of killing her three children during postpartum psychosis, and because the conversation around her has spent that whole time swinging between calling her a monster and asking what actually broke inside her. Women’s mental health was never a side note in that coverage, it was the whole point.”

She went on to say, “I smile through anxiety. I smile when I’m uncomfortable. That is not indifference, it is a nervous system managing strain the only way it knows how.”

At the end of the post, Romano wrote, “I have been told, repeatedly, to take accountability and apologize, when I have nothing to apologize for. What I have actually received are messages telling me to slit my wrists, threats to kill me in my sleep, and a resource of ways to kill myself, sent by people who claim they are defending Lindsay’s mental health.

“If you actually believed a woman’s mental health mattered, you would not hand another woman a method, you would not treat suicide as a punishment, and you would not claim to protect one woman’s humanity while stripping another woman of hers.”

BUÑOL, Spain — A picturesque Spanish town became a sea of red as thousands of festivalgoers flocked to Buñol on Wednesday. This lively gathering, inspired in part by a popular Bollywood movie, was for the annual La Tomatina event, where participants engage in a spirited tomato fight.

Amid the excitement, trucks full of tomatoes crept through the bustling throng, with passengers hurling the juicy fruit at the eager crowd below. Festival participants enthusiastically returned the favor, chucking tomatoes back and forth in an exhilarating exchange.

Initially pristine white shirts quickly transformed into shades of pink and red, with pop tunes adding a vibrant soundtrack to the festivities, resonating from speakers strategically positioned throughout the area.

Although tensions flared momentarily with law enforcement reportedly dispersing a section of the crowd with pepper spray, the celebratory atmosphere rapidly bounced back to its original jubilance.

The lively chaos lasted for more than an hour, as locals had diligently draped the town’s buildings in tarps to brace for the colorful onslaught, ensuring the event unfolded without a hitch.

Held on the last Wednesday of August, the festival traces its origins to a food fight in 1945.

La Tomatina became an annual tradition before Spanish dictator Gen. Francisco Franco banned it in the 1950s.

Televised media attention in the 1980s helped turn the festival into a national event, and eventually, an international attraction.

More than 20,000 people were expected to take part this year, with the Spanish news agency EFE reporting this week that roughly 40% of participants over the past three years have been tourists from outside Spain.

There has been a notable jump in visitors from India in recent years, following the 2011 Bollywood movie “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara” (“You Only Live Once”), in which three friends take a road trip through Spain during an extended bachelor party.

The film recreated La Tomatina, introducing the festival to many Indians.

The movie is what first drew Romail Khokhar, a 27-year-old from Mumbai, to Buñol. He was there on Wednesday morning, eager to participate in the food fight for his third time.

Mazhar and Sanya Khan, both 40, were likewise inspired by the film.

“It was fantastic, absolutely well-managed,” said Mazhar Khan. “We are from India, and this is our first time being in La Tomatina. It has been a dream for over a decade.”

The movie’s appeal isn’t limited to Indians. It also drew Joanna Wytrzyszczewska from Poland.

“Way more crazy than we expected,” said Wytrzyszczewska, 32. “We came because we were inspired by a movie. It was better than the movie.”

Similar tomato-flinging events have taken place in Florida, London, Amsterdam, the Colombian town of Sutamarchán and Hyderabad, India.

Non-local attendees pay 15 euros ($17.50) for a ticket.

The first and only rule: Squash your tomatoes before hurling them to avoid injuries.

Still, many participants don swimming goggles and earplugs for protection.

Once the hour was up, the sound of a cannon blast marked the end of festivities and crowds washed off at communal showers nearby.

The town’s streets were later hosed down.

Though stains on clothes can be permanent, the tomatoes’ citric acid acts as a cleaning agent, often leaving Buñol’s streets cleaner than before.