A Michigan man faces a lengthy prison sentence after authorities accused him of deliberately killing his best friend by running him over, just hours after celebrating his wedding. The court confirmed these details during the proceedings.

On Monday, the Genesee County Circuit Court sentenced 24-year-old James Shirah to a term of 30 to 45 years in prison. Shirah had entered a no-contest plea to the charge of second-degree murder in the death of Terry Taylor Jr.

The tragic event occurred on August 30, 2024, in Flint, located about an hour from Detroit. Shirah and his new wife, Savanah Collier, had tied the knot earlier that day. The celebration continued at a residence on East Hamilton Street, where an argument erupted.

Prosecutors claimed that in the aftermath of the argument, Shirah intentionally struck Taylor with his car. Testimonies presented in court indicated that Shirah had initially left the scene, only to return and fatally hit the victim with his vehicle.

James Shirah received his sentence during a hearing in Flint, Michigan, on May 11, 2026. The hearing was documented by Jake May for The Flint Journal and the Associated Press.

Testimony reported by mlive.com indicated the force of the impact threw Taylor into the air.

“When I got to him all I could see was blood,” Taylor’s cousin said in court, recalling the aftermath. She said first responders were performing CPR when she arrived.

Shirah’s defense attorney argued the crash was not intentional and stemmed from an alcohol-fueled confrontation.

“The only thing I can do for the rest of my life is express my apology and remorse.… I will forever be sorry,” Shirah said during the sentencing hearing.

Judge Khary Hanible acknowledged the gravity of the case while delivering the sentence.

“Mr. Shirah, I believe that you are not a criminal,” the judge said. “You are, however, a killer.”

Family members react as James Shirah is sentenced to at least 30 years in prison in Flint on Monday, May 11, 2026. (Jake May/The Flint Journal/AP)

Taylor, 29, is survived by four children and his fiancée.

Court records indicate Shirah had no prior criminal history. In addition to the murder conviction, he received concurrent sentences tied to the crash for charges including those related to operating a vehicle without a license and leaving the scene.

James Shirah is sentenced to at least 30 years in prison during a hearing in Flint, Mich., on May 11, 2026. (Jake May/The Flint Journal/AP)

He will be eligible for parole after serving at least 30 years.

Collier, Shirah’s wife, has pleaded no contest to accessory after the fact and is scheduled to be sentenced later this month.

Romance is in full bloom.

Sydney Sweeney unveiled an endearing video montage, showcasing her affectionate moments with boyfriend Scooter Braun during various romantic getaways.

The montage, posted on the “Euphoria” star’s Instagram Stories on Wednesday, captured the couple’s tender interactions at a beach, during a helicopter ride, and while scuba diving.

In the opening scene of the video, set to Layup’s song “Who You Share it With,” Braun is seen showering Sweeney with kisses on her neck as they bask in the beachside sunset.

The pair also shared a kiss while dancing and strolled barefoot along the sandy shore.

The “Housemaid” star’s post comes nearly two weeks after she made her relationship with the former talent manager Instagram official.

On May 1, Sweeney shared a carousel of images with her beau at Stagecoach Music Festival 2026, which took place at the end of April in Indio, California.

The post included a snap of the Syrn founder sitting on Braun’s shoulders as they watched Ella Langley’s performance of “Choosin’ Texas.

“cowboy kind of weekend ♥️,” she captioned the post.

Braun, 44, and Sweeney, 28, began dating last fall — months after meeting at Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez’s $50 million Italian wedding in June 2025.

At the time, a source told Page Six that the music executive was initially worried Sweeney was too young for him, but soon became “obsessed” and decided to pursue the actress.

Braun was previously married to mining heiress Yael Cohen from 2014 to 2022. The exes share three kids.

The “Immaculate” stat was previously engaged to businessman Jonathan Davino before they called it quits last spring due to “major issues” in their almost seven-year relationship.

BEIJING — On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump touched down in Beijing, setting the stage for a closely watched meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The summit comes at a time of global tension, with concerns mounting over potential conflicts, economic trade dynamics, and advancements in artificial intelligence.

Before his departure from the White House on Tuesday, Trump commented to the press, “We are the two leading superpowers,” emphasizing America’s military dominance with China closely following.

Despite his confident rhetoric, Trump arrives at a pivotal juncture in his presidency. Domestically, his approval ratings have been challenged by the conflict involving the U.S., Israel, and Iran, coupled with inflationary pressures stemming from the ongoing turmoil. Eager for a diplomatic victory, Trump aims to broker agreements with China to increase imports of American soybeans, beef, and aircraft, prioritizing trade discussions with Xi above all else.

The Trump administration is keen on initiating a Board of Trade with China, a mechanism intended to bridge the economic divide between the two nations. This initiative seeks to avert a repetition of the trade war sparked by Trump’s tariff increases, which China responded to by leveraging its monopoly on rare earth elements. A tentative ceasefire was reached last October, lasting a year.

Trump’s visit to Beijing coincides with the Iran conflict overshadowing his policy agenda at home. The strife has effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, trapping oil and gas shipments and driving up energy costs, threatening to derail global economic stability. Despite these challenges, Trump stated that assistance from Xi in resolving the situation with Iran, whose Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi recently visited Beijing, was not necessary.

“We have a lot of things to discuss. I wouldn’t say Iran is one of them, to be honest with you, because we have Iran very much under control,” Trump told reporters Tuesday.

Taiwan high on the agenda

The status of Taiwan also appears to be a major topic as China is displeased with U.S. plans to sell weapons to the self-governing island that the Chinese government claims as part of its own territory.

Trump told reporters Monday that he would be discussing with Xi an $11 billion weapons package for Taiwan that the U.S. administration authorized in December but has not yet begun fulfilling. The arms package is the largest ever approved for Taiwan.

But the U.S. leader has demonstrated greater ambivalence toward Taiwan, an approach that’s raising questions about whether Trump could be open to dialing back support for the island democracy.

At the same time, Taiwan – as the world’s leading chipmaker – has become essential for the development of AI, with the U.S. importing more goods so far this year from Taiwan than China. Trump has sought to use Biden-era programs and his own deals to bring more chipmaking to America.

The Chinese Communist Party’s news outlet, People’s Daily, published a strongly worded editorial on Tuesday underscoring that Taiwan is “the first red line that cannot be crossed in China-U.S. relations” and is “the biggest point of risk” between the two nations.

Trump says relationship with Xi is on solid footing

Trump was already portraying the trip as a success before he left White House grounds. He openly mused about Xi’s planned reciprocal visit to the U.S., lamenting that the ballroom under construction would not be completed in time to properly fete the Chinese leader.

“We’re going to have a great relationship for many, many decades to come,” Trump said of the U.S. and China. “As you know, President Xi will be coming here toward the end of the year. So that would be exciting. I only wish we had the ballroom finished.”

Trump said he had spoken with the Chinese leader and the meeting would be “positive” as he embarked on Air Force One with a coterie of aides, family members and business world titans, including Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and Tesla and SpaceX’s Elon Musk.

Trump, as he flew to Beijing, posted on social media that his “first request” to Xi during the visit will be to ask the Chinese leader to bolster the presence of U.S. firms in China.

“I will be asking President Xi, a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to ‘open up’ China so that these brilliant people can work their magic, and help bring the People’s Republic to an even higher level!” wrote Trump, who is expected to receive a formal ceremonial greeting when he arrives in the Chinese capital on Wednesday evening.

Despite Trump’s outward confidence, China appears to be entering the meeting from “a much stronger place,” said Scott Kennedy, a senior adviser on Chinese business and economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.

China would like to reduce tech restrictions on accessing computer chips and find ways to reduce tariffs, among other goals.

“But even if they don’t get much on any of those things, as long as there’s not a blow-up in the meeting and President Trump doesn’t go away and look to re-escalate, China basically comes out stronger,” Kennedy said.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng met on Wednesday to discuss economic and trade issues at Incheon International Airport, just west of the South Korean capital Seoul, according to the Chinese state run Xinhua News Agency.

Trump wants 3-way nuclear arms deal

Trump also intends to raise the idea of the U.S., China and Russia signing a pact that would set limits on the nuclear weapons each nation keeps in its arsenal, according to a senior Trump administration official who briefed reporters ahead of the trip. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House.

China has previously been cool to entering such a pact. Beijing’s arsenal, according to Pentagon estimates, exceeds more than 600 operational nuclear warheads and is far from parity with the U.S. and Russia, which each are estimated to have more than 5,000 nuclear warheads.

The last nuclear arms pact, known as the New START treaty, between Russia and the United States expired in February, removing any caps on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century. As the treaty was set to expire, Trump rejected a call by Russia to extend the two-country deal for another year and called for “a new, improved, and modernized” deal that includes China.

The Pentagon estimates China has more than 600 operational nuclear warheads and will have over 1,000 by 2030.

An Illinois resident is suspected of having contracted hantavirus, even though he was not a passenger on the cruise ship linked to a recent global outbreak.

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has announced that it is investigating a possible hantavirus case in Winnebago County. Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is conducting further testing to confirm the diagnosis.

The CDC has warned that the results from the man’s tests might take up to ten days to be finalized, during which time he will be closely monitored by healthcare professionals.

Authorities have confirmed that the man had no connection to the MV Hondius cruise ship, where an outbreak last month resulted in at least 11 confirmed cases of hantavirus, leading to three fatalities.

Preliminary investigations suggest the Illinois man may have contracted the virus after exposure to rodent droppings while cleaning a residence, according to the IDPH.

‘Typically, we see it in cases like this one, where someone was cleaning an area where rats may have dwelled, and it may have aerosolized the either urine or feces from the rat that contain the virus,’ Saint Anthony Hospital Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Alfredo Mena Lora, per ABC7. 

Officials said the man showed milk symptoms that did not require hospitalization, and he is recovering as expected. He is believed to have a North African strain that is not spread person to person, and is different to the Andes strain that broke out on the MV Hondius cruise ship. 

It comes as an American doctor from Bend, Oregon who took on the role of the cruise ship doctor after its initial doctor fell ill with hantavirus revealed that he has also tested positive for the deadly rat-borne virus. 

A man in Illinois is feared to have contracted hantavirus despite not being on the cruise ship linked to a recent outbreak across the globe. Health officials in Tenerife, where the cruise ship docked, are pictured 

Oregon doctor Stephen Kornfeld, who took on the role of the cruise ship doctor after its initial doctor fell ill with hantavirus, revealed that he has also tested positive for the deadly rat-borne virus

Dr Stephen Kornfeld, a retired oncologist, was praised after he jumped into action and helped care for sick passengers on the cruise ship when they were struck down with the virus. 

Kornfeld told CNN that he has since tested positive for hantavirus, and is in isolation in a biocontainment unit at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. 

He said he is currently symptomless, but cautioned that ‘it is still possible that the test represents an evolving disease, and I will get symptoms down the road. This is why I’m in the biocontainment unit.’

Kornfeld joined the cruise in Argentina last month, and previously told CNN he was expecting the trip of a lifetime sailing through the south Atlantic before the hantavirus outbreak. 

He said the voyage fell into chaos when a Dutch couple contracted the hantavirus strain, which is believed to be from a landfill site in Argentina but the source remains under investigation. 

Kornfeld said he ‘fell into the role of becoming the ship doctor’ after the onboard medic was also sickened by the virus, and said the doctor and two other people became seriously ill within a day of the outbreak. 

He described their symptoms as ‘a lot of fever, fatigue, flushing, some gastrointestinal issues, some shortness of breath.’  

‘The fear with hantavirus is you can go from seriously ill to critically ill very quickly,’ he said.

MV Hondius is seen navigating the Atlantic Ocean near Saint Helena island on April 24, 2026

A passenger from the final group to be evacuated from the MV Hondius waves from a bus on the way to the airport in the Granadilla Port on May 11

On Monday, 18 passengers who were on the cruise arrived back in the US. 

The CDC said it will be monitoring all passengers for symptoms for at least 42 days. 

Kornfeld said he felt secure that he would not spread the virus across the US due to the quick actions of health officials. 

He said he is isolating in a ‘very secure facility’, so ‘if I am to get sick, there’s no way that virus is getting out of this building.’ 

Amid fears that the Andes strain of the hantavirus could spread across the globe though person-to-person contact, health officials have scrambled to monitor potential outbreaks in a number of countries. 

On Tuesday night, a British tourist who boarded a plane with a woman who later died from hantavirus was detained at an Italian bar and ordered to quarantine in hospital for a month – despite showing no symptoms and testing negative for the disease. 

The holidaymaker and his companion – who was not even on the flight in question – were apprehended outside the bar on Tuesday night and taken to Sacco Hospital in Milan by the authorities.

They have both been placed in quarantine until June 6, completing the 42-day isolation period required by the ministry of health.

MV Hondius is seen navigating the Atlantic Ocean near Saint Helena island on April 24, 2026

The British citizen, who is in his 60s, had boarded the same Airlink flight from Saint Helena to Johannesburg as MV Hondius passenger Mirjam Schilperoord, 69, who later died, as well as a second person who later tested positive.

Mirjam was the wife of Dutch ornithologist Leo Schilperoord, 70, who is believed to be ‘patient zero’. The couple became sick after visiting a landfill site in Argentina to watch birds.

The UK government notified Italian authorities about the British tourist, who had visited various countries including Amsterdam before arriving in Milan, where his travel plans came to an abrupt halt.

Because he had no private accommodation and was staying in a B&B, he will have to endure the whole of his quarantine in a single room in the Infectious Diseases ward of the hospital.

President Donald Trump has likened the ceasefire with Iran to being on “massive life support,” a metaphor underscoring the fragile state of the agreement. This remark comes as former U.S. military leaders and national security analysts are divided over whether Washington should restart military activities against Tehran or steer clear of what some warn could escalate into another extended conflict in the Middle East.

“The ceasefire is on massive life support,” Trump remarked to reporters on Monday. He further emphasized his point with a vivid analogy: “It’s like when the doctor comes in and tells you, ‘Sir, your loved one has roughly a 1% chance of survival.'”

In addition to his stark assessment, Trump dismissed Iran’s latest response to a proposed deal as “a piece of garbage.” This comes amid reports that the administration is contemplating military strategies if diplomatic efforts fail to yield results.

Retired Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster, who previously served as Trump’s national security advisor, expressed skepticism about Iran’s willingness to make the concessions that Trump deems necessary for reaching an agreement.

President Donald Trump’s analogy of the ceasefire with Iran being on “massive life support” highlights the growing debate among former U.S. military officials and security experts on whether to reinitiate military actions. (Photo Credit: Atta KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

“I think the Iranian leadership and IRGC are unwilling to make the kind of concessions that President Trump thinks are at the minimum,” McMaster told Fox News Digital, referring to Iran’s hardline Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. 

“President Trump always wants a deal,” he added. “But he’s not going to sign up for a bad deal.”

The emerging debate now centers on a core question facing Washington: whether additional military pressure could force Iran to abandon its nuclear and missile ambitions, or whether renewed strikes would deepen a regional conflict without producing decisive results.

Retired Vice Adm. Mark Fox, former deputy commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), said he believes the current ceasefire and diplomatic track are unlikely to force Iran to back down.

“I really cannot envision anything other than a full return to combat operations,” Fox told Fox News Digital. “The only thing that they will respond to, I think ultimately, is force.”

Fox argued the U.S. military remains capable of reopening and securing commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz despite ongoing Iranian threats against vessels transiting the waterway.

Supporters of renewed military action argue Iran is weaker than it has been in decades and that stopping now risks allowing Tehran to regroup, rebuild its missile arsenal and preserve leverage over one of the world’s most important energy choke points. (AP Photo)

“This is a militarily obtainable objective,” he said, outlining a strategy involving guided missile destroyers, attack helicopters, drones and expanded aerial surveillance to create a protected maritime corridor through the Strait.

Fox acknowledged the U.S. Navy is smaller than it was during the 1980s tanker wars, but argued American forces still possess the capability to secure the chokepoint if Washington commits enough naval assets and persistent monitoring operations.

“It’s not easy,” Fox said. “But the geography is fixed.”

He described a possible strategy that would rely on destroyers, drones and attack aircraft to create what he called an “unblinking eye” over the strait, allowing U.S. forces to identify and neutralize Iranian speedboats, drones and anti-shipping threats before they can strike commercial vessels.

Fox also warned against allowing Iran to preserve leverage over Hormuz while continuing to advance its missile and nuclear programs.

“If not now, when?” he said. “If they had a nuclear weapon, they would use it.”

But not everyone agrees that renewed military action would produce a better outcome. (Contributor/Getty Images)

Fox, who also signed onto a recent policy paper by the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, echoed the report’s argument that Iran is using negotiations to buy time while preserving its military capabilities.

The paper was authored by several retired senior U.S. military officials and national security experts, including retired Gen. Chuck Wald, former deputy commander of U.S. European Command and retired Vice Adm. Robert Harward, former deputy commander of CENTCOM, argued the current ceasefire and diplomatic track “cannot reliably compel Iran” to meet U.S. demands and warned Tehran was seeking to “drag out talks, erode U.S. resolve, and use the time to strengthen itself.”

The report called for expanded military operations targeting Iran’s maritime capabilities, missile infrastructure and internal coercive apparatus while avoiding broad attacks on civilian infrastructure that could trigger wider regional escalation.

But not everyone agrees that renewed military action would produce a better outcome.

Retired Lt. Col. Daniel Davis, a senior fellow at Defense Priorities and longtime critic of expanded U.S. military interventions, warned that calls to “finish the job” ignore the realities exposed during the recent fighting.

“To ‘finish the job,’ as they say, is irrational,” Davis told Fox News Digital. “It’s illogical, and it violates any kind of military principle.”

A screengrab from a video released by U.S. Central Command shows smoke and dust rising after an explosion at an unknown location during the operation dubbed Epic Fury, an attack by the United States and Israel on Iran, released Feb. 28, 2026. (CENTCOM/Reuters)

Davis argued that despite thousands of strikes and weeks of fighting, Iran retained significant missile and maritime capabilities.

“We couldn’t knock them out with 14,000 targets hit,” he said. “Why does anybody think that going back another time is going to have a different result?”

He described Iran’s geography, dispersed missile infrastructure and asymmetric naval tactics as creating what he called “a militarily unsolvable problem.”

“The only thing left is a diplomatic outcome,” Davis said.

The disagreement reflects a broader divide emerging in Washington as officials weigh what comes next if negotiations fail.

Supporters of renewed military action argue Iran is weaker than it has been in decades and that stopping now risks allowing Tehran to regroup, rebuild its missile arsenal and preserve leverage over one of the world’s most important energy choke points.

Critics counter that even extensive U.S. and Israeli strikes failed to fundamentally break the regime’s control or eliminate its military capabilities, raising the risk that further escalation could drag the United States into another drawn-out regional conflict with uncertain results.