A slain New York Times executive gave his daughter a children’s book about grieving the death of a mother—even though her mother was still alive, according to allegations in a court filing.

Candice Jang said she was frightened by the birthday present Jonathan McKinsey allegedly selected for their daughter.

The book, The Memory String, tells the story of a young girl mourning her mother’s death, SFGATE reported.

“Jonathan has previously threatened to kill me and my parents,” Jang wrote. “… I cannot know what Jonathan intended by selecting that particular book.”

Given those alleged threats, Jang said the choice of book was “deeply disturbing and frightening.”

McKinsey, who was assigned female at birth and later transitioned to become a transgender man, was embroiled in a bitter divorce when his in-laws allegedly shot him in a California parking lot last weekend.

McKinsey had served as head of engineering for games player experience at The New York Times since 2023. He and Jang presented sharply conflicting accounts of their relationship.

The couple accused each other of domestic violence in filings before Alameda County Superior Court during the divorce proceedings. Jang received a temporary restraining order in October 2025.

McKinsey sought his own restraining order in December 2025, one week before Jang’s temporary order was due to expire.

In his December restraining-order application, McKinsey accused Jang of physically and emotionally abusing him on a weekly basis.

He alleged that Jang struck him on the head with a frying pan in 2013 and continued hitting him until he agreed to eat a cockroach, SFGATE reported.

The filing also alleged that Jang submerged a cat in a bucket, though McKinsey said he was able to revive the animal.

McKinsey further accused Jang of mistreating their children.

He also claimed that his mother-in-law, Shili Chen, became angry after seeing his son Wyatt ask to wear dresses belonging to his sister, Alexis.

According to the filing, McKinsey told Chen that his son was going through a “phase.” He alleged that she responded by berating both him and the child.

McKinsey alleged that Chen called the boy a “disgusting queer” and a “pervert,” then directed the same slurs at McKinsey while criticizing him for being transgender, the filing stated.

McKinsey alleged in his restraining order filing that when he begged Chen to stop berating his son, his mother-in-law then turned her anger toward him.

‘She blamed me for Wyatt wanting to wear his sister’s dresses and told me to get out of “her house” even though we were in the home owned by Candice and I,’ McKinsey wrote in the filing.

He added that he attempted to make his wife hire outside help to prevent Chen from ever watching their children again, but he claimed Jang refused.

McKinsey also filed allegations of abuse from Jang in their relationship, including claiming that she tried to push him into suicide, according to his court filings.

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According to McKinsey, his wife told him he should take his own life because ‘no one would want to be with someone as f***ed up and transgender like me.’

Jang went on to file her own restraining order against McKinsey last year, alleging he had ‘threatened to kill me and my parents.’

McKinsey had previously faced two counts of misdemeanor child abuse, following a police report in 2023 accusing him of slapping their six-year-old son in the face and leaving a ‘large bruise in the shape of a handprint’ on his face.

Jang also claimed McKinsey had previously been violent with her in 2018 when he grabbed her wrist hard enough to leave bruises.

In that incident, deputies said they arrived at McKinsey’s home to find a two-year-old left unattended in an upstairs bedroom while McKinsey had left to go shopping.

McKinsey was charged with cruelty to a child by endangering health and corporal injury to a child, both misdemeanors, and was freed on a $50,000 bail.

The bail was conditional on him completing 12 parenting classes. McKinsey pleaded not guilty in both incidents.

Jang’s restraining order and domestic violence protection order against McKinsey was granted last year, leading McKinsey to respond by requesting a domestic violence protection order against her and filing for divorce.

He had since sought more time with the three children, noting that he had been limited to two hours of supervised visits per week since last fall, Alameda County court documents show.

McKinsey made the allegations that Chen had directed anti-LGBTQ+ slurs at him and at one of their children in his petition for a protection order.

The New York Times tech executive further accused Jang of being abusive during medical procedures related to his transition, claiming that at one point she tried to pull medical tubes from his body shortly after he underwent a procedure, according to the Mercury News.

He also alleged that Jang’s father, Shouyong Zhang, 77, punched him in the chest while he was recovering from a double mastectomy.

At the time of his killing, he was out on bail and had been trying to enter a mental health diversion program, which would have resulted in the charges being dropped upon completion, according to Mercury News.

In subsequent court documents, an attorney for Jang wrote that McKinsey ‘is simply prone to domestic violence and child abuse,’ noting that the incidents she cited in her previous complaint were ‘far from the first time’ he ‘committed physical violence against me or my family members’.

‘Due to his violent and negligent history, our children are simply not safe when left unsupervised and in his care,’ Jang wrote in a court filing last month.

The killing occurred a week before a hearing was scheduled in McKinsey and Jang’s divorce case.

It remains unclear whether Zhang and Chen may have been motivated to allegedly kill McKinsey over the claims of abuse or disagreements over his gender identity.

‘Part of our investigation is looking for motives from all angles as well as looking at the histories and relationships of everyone involved and associated with the victim and suspects,’ Captain Michael Campos, of Dublin Police Services, told the Post.

After McKinsey was shot dead on Saturday, a neighbor told the San Francisco Chronicle that McKinsey had recently moved out of the home he shared with his wife and three children.

Zhang and Chen’s arraignment has been scheduled for Wednesday. The couple are facing a slew of charges, including murder, felony conspiracy, child endangerment and dangerously firing a gun.

Newly released body-camera footage captures the tense moment police realized they had found Luigi Mangione, ending a five-day manhunt.

“It’s f–king him, dude,” one male officer is heard telling colleagues as a female officer removed a magazine of ammunition from Mangione’s backpack, CNN reported.

Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Dec. 9, 2024—five days after UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot in Manhattan.

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Some sections of the extensive police video were shown during a court hearing last year. The footage was made public only after a Manhattan judge ruled that it could be released.

Mangione, 28, recently pleaded guilty to federal stalking charges related to Thompson’s death. He has also asked a judge to dismiss the state murder case, arguing that his guilty plea means he is protected by double-jeopardy laws.

At least 83 flights operated by Iranian airlines under U.S. sanctions landed in Turkey during the five days following a key American enforcement deadline, according to flight data reviewed by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. The findings are raising fresh questions about whether Washington will penalize companies that continue serving the carriers in a NATO ally.

In a Sept. 28 report, FDD said U.S. pressure had driven Iranian airlines from several regional markets, including Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Oman. Turkey, however, remains a major hole in Washington’s campaign to restrict the carriers’ operations.

The report followed the Treasury Department’s Sept. 8 announcement of sweeping sanctions against Iran’s aviation sector. The agency designated all 27 remaining active Iranian airlines under Executive Order 13902, saying the industry has been used to move weapons, personnel and illicit cargo. Treasury also warned foreign companies about the risks of continuing to provide services to the sanctioned carriers.

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The flights are continuing at a particularly sensitive time in U.S.-Turkey relations. Turkey is a NATO ally, and President Donald Trump has highlighted his close ties with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan while expressing openness to restoring Ankara’s participation in the F-35 fighter jet program. Turkey was removed from the program after acquiring Russia’s S-400 air-defense system, a decision that also led to U.S. sanctions in 2020.

During a July 2026 trip to Turkey, Trump said his administration would lift the sanctions and was weighing whether to permit Turkey to purchase F-35s. Congressional restrictions linked to Ankara’s possession of the S-400 remain a barrier, however. Erdoğan said on Sept. 24 that he expects Washington to take “concrete steps” toward Turkey’s reinstatement in the program.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that companies supplying sanctioned Iranian airlines with fuel, landing assistance or other services after the Sept. 23 wind-down deadline could lose access to the U.S. financial system. FDD quoted Bessent as saying Iranian airlines would be “shut down around the world” by that date.

Yet an analysis by FDD researchers Ahmad Sharawi and Sinan Ciddi of Flightradar24 flight histories found that at least 83 flights by U.S.-sanctioned Iranian carriers arrived in Turkey between Sept. 23 and Sept. 27. The flights landed at airports in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir, the report said.

The researchers identified 12 sanctioned Iranian airlines among the arrivals. Iran Airtour and Caspian Airlines each recorded 12 landings, while Iran Air had 10. ATA Airlines and AVA Airlines accounted for nine apiece. Eight of the 12 carriers in the data were included in Treasury’s new Sept. 8 designations.

The Treasury Department told News Media that it has continued raising the issue with senior Turkish officials and warning Turkish companies and financial institutions that they could face sanctions exposure.

“Following Treasury’s productive engagements with senior Turkish authorities last month, which quickly translated into tangible results — including the cancellation of Mahan Air flights and the revocation of Bank Mellat’s license — we have continued discussions regarding Türkiye’s aviation links to Iran and the sanctions exposure Turkish financial institutions and businesses face for facilitating these flights,” a Treasury spokesperson told News Media. The spokesperson added that the department had made those risks clear and was continuing to address the matter with the Turkish government at senior levels.

The spokesperson also cited the administration’s wider “Operation Economic Outcast” campaign, saying it was helping cut Iran off from revenue and international markets. “Operation Economic Outcast is delivering results as Treasury and our partners continue to sever the Iranian regime’s remaining economic lifelines,” the spokesperson said. “Iran’s rial has fallen to record lows, Iran loaded no crude oil onto tankers in September, and countries across the region are taking concrete steps to restrict Iran’s access to the international financial system and commercial aviation.”

“We will continue applying pressure and holding accountable those who provide the regime with the financial and commercial lifelines it needs to sustain its terrorist activities,” the spokesperson said.

Turkey has taken some measures to reduce its aviation connections with Iran. Turkish Airlines, AJet and Pegasus removed Iranian routes from their schedules, while Mahan Air suspended service to Turkey starting Sept. 21, according to Turkish Minute, which cited airline schedules and reporting from the Financial Times and other outlets.

Mahan Air has been under U.S. sanctions since 2011. Treasury said the airline had provided financial, material and technological support to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force.

Other sanctioned carriers have continued operating flights to Turkey. Treasury designated Caspian Airlines and Meraj Air as Specially Designated Global Terrorists in August 2014. The department said Caspian had transported IRGC personnel and weapons to Syria, while Meraj had carried illicit cargo, including weapons, to the Syrian government.

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Sharawi told News Media that the flights demonstrate a disconnect between Ankara’s public measures and its treatment of sanctioned Iranian airlines.

“The fact that sanctioned Iranian airlines continue to land in Turkey, despite Washington’s clear effort to restrict their operations, is a testament to Ankara’s willingness to take symbolic measures while turning a blind eye to much of Iran’s broader activity,” Sharawi said.

Sharawi argued that Washington could increase pressure by targeting Turkish companies that continue providing services to sanctioned Iranian carriers.

“Ankara may think it can get away with this, but Washington has not hesitated in the past to sanction Turkish entities that support sanctioned Iranian actors,” he told News Media. “Continuing to target companies that provide that support would send a clear message to Ankara that facilitating Iran’s sanctioned networks will carry consequences.”

He said such measures could have a practical effect on Iran’s ability to maintain the routes.

“If the United States targets the support system that keeps these sanctioned Iranian carriers operating, private Turkish companies will have much less incentive to continue doing business with them,” Sharawi said. “If those companies begin cutting ties, it could significantly restrict Iranian airlines’ ability to operate routes to Turkey.”

The Turkey findings come as another advocacy group is raising concerns about a different potential weak point in Washington’s campaign to isolate Tehran: Iranian maritime commerce in waters near Malaysia.

United Against Nuclear Iran said Sept. 25 that its investigators traveled roughly 100 nautical miles into the South China Sea near Malaysia’s Eastern Outer Port Limits, where the group said it observed Iranian-linked tankers, cargo vessels and bulk carriers alongside Malaysian bunker vessels supplying ships with fuel. UANI described the concentration of ships as a “floating city” supporting Iran’s sanctions-evasion network. Those findings were produced by UANI and have not been independently verified for this draft.

“After seeing this floating city of ghost tankers with our own eyes, it is clear it is serving as an illicit Malaysia-backed lifeline for the Iranian regime,” UANI CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace said in a Sept. 25 statement. He accused Malaysian entities of providing support that allows Tehran to continue generating revenue despite international efforts to economically isolate the regime.

Former Florida Gov. and UANI Chairman Jeb Bush and Wallace called on the Treasury Department to sanction entities associated with Malaysia’s Pengerang petroleum complex as well as Malaysian entities or officials they allege are facilitating the trade. Their call for sanctions is an advocacy position and does not establish that the Malaysian entities have violated U.S. law.

News Media has learned that Treasury has mapped Iranian oil-smuggling networks, facilitators and financial channels, including deceptive shipping activity off the coast of Malaysia, and that senior Treasury officials continue to raise the issue with Malaysian and other foreign government counterparts.

Taken together, the findings from FDD and UANI highlight what the organizations describe as continuing enforcement challenges as Washington attempts to cut Iran off from international aviation, shipping and financial networks. Treasury has continued expanding that campaign: on Sept. 29, it announced another round of sanctions targeting individuals and companies it said had procured weapons and components for Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics.

News Media reached out to the Turkish and Malaysian embassies for comment but did not receive a response.

Halle Berry and her former husband Olivier Martinez had previously turned to co-parenting therapy to address disagreements over raising their son, before Martinez later accused the actress of abuse.

On Thursday, it emerged that the French actor had been awarded temporary primary custody of their son after alleging that Berry had physically abused him. Berry has rejected the claims, calling them “entirely meritless.”

A judge also issued Martinez a temporary domestic violence restraining order against Berry, covering both him and their son. Under the order, Berry must remain at least 100 yards from Martinez.

The former couple had reportedly completed six joint parenting-therapy sessions as they tried to reach common ground on how to raise their son.

Berry and Martinez’s volatile separation unfolded over seven years and included a protracted divorce battle. A source previously claimed that Martinez’s “explosive temper” played a role in the breakdown of their three-year marriage.

Court documents obtained by PEOPLE state that Berry and Martinez had previously attempted to “resolve disputes and conflicts between them in an effort to successfully co-parent” through specialized therapy.

The process began with individual coaching sessions before moving to six sessions attended by both parents. Berry’s fiancé, Van Hunt, was also permitted to take part.

However, the therapy did not produce a lasting resolution. In August 2024, Berry accused Martinez of attempting to step away from the arrangement and asked the court to require him to continue participating.

A judge ruled in Berry’s favor in October, while acknowledging that Martinez had already resumed complying with her request after she brought the matter before the court.

A source told PEOPLE that the pair “have very different parenting styles” and that co-parenting had been challenging. “Still, they both love Maceo and he’s amazing,” the source said, describing him as a “very focused student” and adding that Berry works hard to protect his privacy.

Berry and Martinez separated in 2016, but their divorce was not officially completed until 2023, following years of legal disputes.

After the split, sources said Martinez’s temper was among the factors that contributed to the end of the marriage. One source told PEOPLE that he had never been physically abusive toward Berry, describing him as possessive in a “caveman” way but not abusive toward her or their family.

“He had an explosive temper in a way that was profoundly frightening,” the source added. “You never knew when he would explode.”

Martinez had previously been involved in another public altercation. In 2012, he fought Berry’s former partner Gabriel Aubry, the father of her daughter Nahla, who is now 16.

The confrontation occurred when Aubry arrived at Berry’s Los Angeles home to drop off their daughter and became involved in a physical clash with Martinez.

Both men were treated at a hospital for injuries sustained in the incident.

According to court documents, Aubry said he was preparing to leave after dropping off his daughter when Martinez told him they needed to have a conversation.

‘All of a sudden, Mr. Martinez jumped on me on the side of my body, and punched me such that he had taken me down to the ground. 

‘He continued to punch me at least two or three times, kicked me in the ribs with his knee or foot, and took my head in his hands and slammed it to the concrete driveway,’ he said.

‘While he was attacking me physically, Mr. Martinez said to me in an aggressive and threatening voice, ‘You cost us 3 million dollars. When you see the judge, you’re going to tell him you’re going to Paris or I’m going to kill you. You’re going to Paris, you’re going to get your 20 grand a month in child support. 

‘From now on you’re going to do drop offs on the street. I’m not just some [expletive] actor, you don’t know me.’

Gabriel was arrested and issued a restraining order as a result of the incident.

A source told PEOPLE: ‘Gabriel attacked Olivier and Olivier defended himself.’

Gabriel ‘was booked for a private persons arrest for battery,’ LAPD spokesperson Andrew Smith told the publication.

An emergency protective order was granted requiring Gabriel to stay 100 yards away from Halle, Olivier and Nahla. 

Olivier was also the subject of a battery investigation after pushing an LAX employee in 2015.

In video footage of the scuffle, Martinez is seen holding up an empty child car seat to use as a barricade between himself and photographers as he and Halle made their way through the airport.

As they come through a set of double doors, the airport employee is seen holding up a digital camera taking pictures of Martinez, before falling to the ground after he collides with the car seat.

TMZ reported that amid the scuffle an airport employee was pushed to the ground, after Martinez allegedly shoved an empty car seat towards him, making him fall backwards.

The employee is then said to have been taken to a hospital where he complained of abdominal pains.

While Olivier did not face prosecution, the employee involved in the clash sued him and Halle for $5 million in compensation. The case was later settled.

Halle and Olivier finalised their divorce in 2023, seven years after they first announced their split.

It was agreed that Halle would pay Olivier a whopping $8,000 a month with expenses for Maceo’s health insurance, therapy and school on top of that. 

She was also ordered to write a check for an additional 4.3 percent of all income she receives above $2 million, while covering Maceo’s private school tuition and all of his other activities, like his soccer expenses. 

Despite hopes this would bring an end to their disputes, in 2024 Halle began a legal battle for sole custody of their son.

Halle claimed she has spent over $200,000 in legal fees including ‘voluntarily’ contributing $80,000 towards Martinez’s own legal expenses.

She also claimed the actor was supporting himself financially using her child support payments.

Berry was seeking sole custody of their child as she claimed Maceo was struggling in school and that he is, ‘grade levels behind,’ adding he’d been diagnosed with ADHD and mild dyslexia.

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Berry added that Martinez was, ‘either oblivious’ to his difficulties or, ‘carelessly disregards them,’ which she said proves he’s unfit for custody.

On Thursday, court documents obtained by The Daily Mail showed Olivier had been granted temporary primary custody of their 12-year-old son Maceo after accusing the actress of physically abusing him.

Olivier alleged Halle ‘physically abused our son by jumping on him and choking him’ during a September 26, 2026, incident.

The actor was also granted a temporary domestic violence restraining order against Berry, which protects both him and their son from the actress. The order required Halle to stay 100 yards away from Olivier. 

Halle has also lost 50/50 custody, and will be allowed to see their son only during court-ordered visitation two days a week and every other weekend until a hearing on October 16. 

Berry’s attorney Marina Beck told the Daily Mail the filing is ‘entirely meritless’ and added that Berry is ‘used to this kind of outrageous conduct’ from Martinez. 

The actress is ‘deeply saddened’ by the situation, though she will ‘not allow it to deter her from fighting for Maceo’s best interests and providing him with the love and support he needs.’ 

The filing lays bare a series of alleged disputes between Berry, Martinez, and their son over the past few years – with the most recent one prompting him to take legal action against her. 

‘Throughout the last year-and-a-half, Ms. Berry has wrestled Maceo to the ground and forced him to ‘tap out,” Martinez alleged. 

The documents allege Berry has ‘grabbed our son’s neck from the back when he is not looking and forced him to tap out’ multiple times previously – instances that she allegedly insisted were done in jest, but which their son disliked.  

Berry and Martinez have also been ordered to participate in confidential mediation to discuss custody, according to legal documents obtained by TMZ. 

The incident which triggered the restraining order allegedly all began after Berry told Maceo he looked ‘so stupid’ and was ‘an idiot’ while playing a virtual reality game and wearing specialized goggles. 

According to Martinez, Maceo told him his mother ‘came into Maceo’s bedroom and began pushing Maceo. From what I can tell, the initial contact appeared to be intended to be in a joking manner. Maceo told Petitioner [Berry], ‘Stop. Let me finish the game first.’ This sent Petitioner into a rage.’

The actor further alleged in the court document: ‘Petitioner told Maceo that he looks ‘so stupid’ and is ‘such an idiot’ for playing this game with the VR goggle.

‘The situation escalated from there. Petitioner jumped on Maceo and started physically fighting with him. She grabbed Maceo by the neck and started choking him while shouting, ‘Who is dominant now?! Who is dominant?”

‘Maceo told me he had to fight back,’ Martinez wrote in the filing. ‘Through his efforts, he managed to escape Petitioner’s grip. He started screaming, at which point, Petitioner’s boyfriend came into the room.

According to Martinez, Maceo claimed that Berry’s fiance, Van Hunt, treated him ‘fair.’

The document states that Hunt ‘defended Maceo as he was packing his clothes to leave when Petitioner tried to tell him that he could not take his clothes because Petitioner had bought them for him.’

‘When Maceo said that the clothes had been given to him so he could take them with him, Petitioner’s boyfriend agreed with him and convinced Petitioner to allow him to pack his clothes.’

Martinez claimed that on the night of the alleged incident, he received a ‘frantic call’ from his son asking him to pick him up ”right now.”

Martinez said he then contacted Berry over text message about picking Maceo up, asking if she was ‘OK with it.’

Text messages included in the filing show the correspondence between Martinez and Berry, with the actress allegedly responding to Martinez’s pick up request: ‘No I’m not ok with it. He wants to fight his mother?? What kind of kid are we raising.”

Martinez alleged he had several more calls with his son and could hear Berry’s voice in one of the conversations. He claims to have heard his son telling Berry that he is going to ‘leave forever’, with Berry ‘yelling’ to their son, ‘Good. Good. I don’t want to see anymore.’

He alleges to have received several more urgent-sounding text messages from Maceo asking when he will arrive.

When he arrived to the house, Maceo emerged with Hunt, who was carrying bags of Maceo’s clothing and ‘had a shocked look on his face’ when asked by Martinez about what had happened. He alleged Hunt ‘did not respond to my question.’

Martinez said he was unaware of the alleged physical confrontation between his son and Berry and did not push him for details during the car ride home. Maceo ended up sharing what had allegedly transpired later that night. 

The following morning, Martinez allegedly received a text message from Berry which read: ‘Oliver, I’ve reached out to Maceo and asked to speak with him. I know you very much think he makes his own decisions but I would really appreciate it if you would encourage him to speak with me today. I feel terrible about what happened last night as I know he does as well.’

Martinez alleges Maceo no longer wishes to spend time at Berry’s home. ‘I believe he may be traumatized from the incident. My peace was disturbed by the fact that Petitioner physically abused our son,’ he wrote. 

The September incident is allegedly not the first time Berry has physically abused Maceo.

‘Both our son and Petitioner have spoken to me about past attacks. Both have confirmed that Petitioner has unprovokedly attacked our son and has put him in choke holds that she learned while training in mixed martial arts. 

‘Our son has repeatedly explained how much he hates this, while Petitioner has downplayed the incidents, claiming she was just joking or playing with him.’  

It allegedly escalated to the point that Maceo told his father, ”The next time she does that, I’m going to kick her a**.” 

Martinez further alleged: ‘While the September 26, 2026 incident in which Petitioner choked our son is the latest incident of abuse, I contend there have been other instances of abuse over the course of the last few years. 

‘These other incidents involve additional physical attacks against our son, as well as verbal and emotional abuse from Petitioner to me. 

‘All of these incidents have disturbed my peace and is conduct that falls within the scope of the Domestic Violence Protection Act. I have significant concerns about Petitioner’s mental health, as well as her alcohol abuse, which I believe have contributed to her abusive conduct.’  

Martinez also accused Berry of slapping Maceo in the face twice around five years ago.

‘I am aware of the fact that Petitioner has struck Maceo in the face before,’ he says. ‘Specifically, she slapped him in the face twice, approximately 5 years ago. While I don’t have personal knowledge of this incident, I believe that Maceo would testify to this if he were asked by the Court or a Court appointed evaluator.’

In his filing, Martinez requested that Berry remain 100 yards away from them, attend a 52-week batterer intervention program, and be ordered to remain sober while caring for Maceo. 

‘An Order that Ms. Berry must not drink or be under the influence of alcohol or other substances while exercising visitation with or custody of Maceo. Ms. Berry shall complete Sober Link testing before, during, and after visitation with Maceo at intervals the Court deems appropriate. Ms. Berry shall complete any other test the Court deems appropriate for protecting Maceo.’ 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is heading toward the end of his tenure with only tepid support at home — a warning sign that could complicate the Democrat’s potential 2028 presidential campaign.

In a poll released by NBCUniversal Local and the Telemundo Station Group, 45% of 625 registered California voters approved of Newsom’s performance, while 46% disapproved.

The survey, conducted Sept. 21-24, revealed a sharp partisan divide. Roughly 93% of Republican respondents said Newsom was doing a poor job, while 56% of independents also gave him negative marks.

Matt Rexroad, a political consultant, told The Post that Newsom’s greatest challenge may be his weak standing outside California’s two dominant metropolitan areas: Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

In largely rural Northern California — excluding Sacramento and the Bay Area — just 28% of voters approved of Newsom’s job performance, compared with 60% who disapproved.

“This does not impact his Presidential campaign directly, but it does indicate that he does not know how to communicate with rural voters,” Rexroad said.

“The people of Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina will not be impressed with a politician from California who wants to talk about being from 1) California 2) San Francisco and 3) now lives in Marin County,” he added.

Rexroad pointed to a recent Republican Governors Association advertisement linking a Democratic candidate for governor in Kansas to California as evidence of the Golden State’s deeply polarizing national image.

The survey also found a pronounced gender divide. Most men disapproved of Newsom’s performance, while most women approved. By race, a majority of white Californians viewed him negatively, whereas Hispanic and Asian respondents generally offered positive assessments.

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Approximately 74% of California Democrats approved of Newsom’s job performance. But Morris Levy, an associate professor of political science at the University of Southern California, said that level of support may not be sufficient for a national campaign in an increasingly polarized political climate.

“In short, Democrats mostly support Newsom, and Republicans are overwhelmingly opposed,” Levy said.

“Some Democrats are also lukewarm on Newsom, or dissatisfied with his performance, and this could become an issue if he seeks the nomination.”

Levy said the divide is driven in large part by partisanship, noting that President Donald Trump’s approval-rating breakdown appears to be a “mirror image” of Newsom’s.

The poll found that 66% of California Democrats would be inclined to support Newsom for the Democratic presidential nomination, compared with 15% who would not. Levy cautioned, however, that the question did not ask voters to choose between Newsom and competing candidates.

Newsom’s approval remained relatively consistent across age groups, but Levy said the results may not fully capture the challenges he would face in a presidential bid.

“Newsom has sought to position himself as a mainstream Democrat — tussling with Trump but also tacking toward the center on issues such as transgender athletes’ participation in female sports,” he said. “That probably masks the opposition Newsom or Harris would face from the surging younger portion of their base that has shifted far to the left on economic issues, Israel, and more.”

In recent months, Newsom has visited early primary states, including Michigan and South Carolina, as he gauges his appeal beyond California.

The governor has also announced policies and adopted positions that analysts view as efforts to connect with the left-leaning voters who could shape a Democratic presidential primary. This year, for instance, Newsom endorsed a national tax on billionaires despite having long opposed a similar proposal in California.

The Post contacted Newsom’s office for comment on the poll.

The owner of a Mississippi gas station where investigators believe Robert Strang purchased synthetic kratom says the pills discovered near the student’s body did not come from his business.

Court records state that Ole Miss students Robert Strang, 20, and Aidan Hamilton, 18, were found dead Sept. 21, with similar synthetic kratom packages located near both bodies. Authorities said Hamilton “could have died due to a Pulmonary Edema,” a finding considered consistent with a fatal drug overdose. Dispatch audio indicated that emergency responders who went to Strang’s residence near campus found him “cold to the touch.”

According to an affidavit filed by a narcotics agent, the packages recovered near the students contained Smax Pseudo-DHM. The package found near Hamilton listed pseudoindoxyl and MGM-15(DHM) as ingredients. The Drug Enforcement Administration temporarily classified mitragynine pseudoindoxyl as a Schedule I substance on Aug. 26, making its sale illegal.

A Mississippi law enforcement officer investigating the deaths wrote that he believed the term “pseudoindoxyl” referred to mitragynine pseudoindoxyl. Laboratory testing to verify the pills’ contents was still pending, court documents said.

Investigators who interviewed Strang’s roommates learned that he had reportedly bought “Smax” pills from Express Mart #7, a gas station in Water Valley, Mississippi, located just over 20 minutes from the University of Mississippi. An undercover agent with the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics later purchased a similar Smax Pseudo product at the store. Its packaging identified pseudoindoxyl as an ingredient, which the agent said he believed was an abbreviated reference to mitragynine pseudoindoxyl.

Ibrahim Aydah, who owns the gas station, told News Media that he does not think the Smax package recovered near Strang was sold at his store. Aydah said his business does not place price stickers on its products and that the package found near Strang displayed a price. He also said he did not stock the 200-milligram version.

“The package that I see on the news… it wasn’t from my store,” Aydah said. “The package… the Smax is 200. I never carry 200. And it has different ingredients in it than mine.”

Court documents say a clerk at Express Mart told the undercover agent that the store was sold out of the 200-milligram product.

Aydah said federal agents removed all of the kratom products from his store during a Friday search. He said he wished the federal government had warned him that the products he was selling were prohibited.

“Yes, they took all my stuff. I lost everything, and it’s a law,” Aydah said. “The federal law bans it. I was shocked.”

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Aydah described seeing about 15 police and undercover vehicles at the location. He said he was initially at home before arriving at the station and opening the office for investigators, whom he identified as DEA agents. “I’m a businessman. I’m not a drug dealer,” he said.

When asked what message he had for the families of the two students, Aydah expressed his sympathy.

“I feel sorry for the young kids who lost their lives to an overdose. You know, it hurts. I feel them. Their friends, their classmates, and everyone…you know, he’s a young kid,” Aydah said.

A DEA spokeswoman told News Media that the agency searched the gas station Friday under a warrant and said the action was connected to an “ongoing investigation.”

“The Aug. 26 scheduling order does cover products that list ‘pseudoindoxyl’ on the label,” the spokeswoman said.

Authorities have not charged Aydah or accused him of wrongdoing.

In a statement issued Wednesday, Lafayette County Metro Narcotics, a division of the sheriff’s office, stopped short of saying that investigators had confirmed kratom itself was found near either student.

“During the investigations, packaging associated with kratom-related products was discovered at both locations,” part of the statement read. The Sept. 25 affidavit reported toxicology results from the medical examiner were still pending.

American Kratom Association Senior Fellow on Public Policy Mac Haddow said Wednesday during a news conference that the specific drug found near both students is illegal.

Haddow pointed out the sale and possession of some synthetic kratom has been illegal federally as of August and illegal to sell or possess in Oxford, Mississippi since 2019, and illegal in Lafayette County, where Oxford is located, since 2021.

News Media reached out to the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the DEA for comment.