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October 23: Paris Suburb Shooting and Musk’s Campaign Spending
In France
At least one person has been killed and four others injured in a shooting in Trappes, a Paris suburb. The French prime minister says a person is in police custody.
Separately, authorities have banned gatherings and extended curfews in French cities ahead of anticipated weekend protests, seeking to prevent further unrest.
Storm Austen
Thousands of homes lost power and dozens of schools were affected as Storm Austen hit southwest England. National Grid reported more than 16,000 homes without electricity shortly before 11 a.m. Friday. A wind gust of 76 miles per hour was recorded on the Isles of Scilly.
In Washington
The Justice Department is investigating allegations that Corey Lewandowski used his position for financial gain. Investigators are examining his role in awarding government contracts and whether he profited from them.
Separately, the Detroit News reports that Republican Congressman Jack Bergman rented a Washington home from a major campaign donor. The donor later sold it to Bergman’s daughter in what the newspaper describes as a favorable seller-financed deal.
Turkey mine explosion
An explosion at a privately owned coal mine in northern Turkey killed two miners and injured five others, two seriously. One person remains trapped inside.
South Africa’s budget proposal
South Africa has proposed requiring future governments to set fiscal targets and explain departures from them, with independent parliamentary oversight. The draft imposes no fixed debt or spending ceiling. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana says it would protect fiscal gains while preserving flexibility.
Mississippi police shooting
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has released body-camera footage of the fatal police shooting of one-year-old Kohen Wiley in a Walmart parking lot in Senatobia.
Midterm campaign money
Federal filings show Elon Musk gave another $76.78 million to his America PAC in the first two weeks of October.
In Michigan, the New York Times reports that Senator Bernie Sanders transferred $1 million to Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed after learning that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee planned to spend as much as $9 million to defeat him. Sanders also urged progressive allies to contribute.
Chatbots and mental health
Vanderbilt researchers identified 28 patients whose medical records linked chatbot use to worsening psychotic symptoms, among more than 215,000 behavioral health patients. The study, published in JAMA Psychiatry, found that chatbots most often appeared to reinforce existing delusions. About 61 percent of those patients were experiencing their first episode of psychosis. The records-based study cannot establish causation, and researchers say chatbot use may have gone undocumented because clinicians do not routinely screen for it.
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