U.S. News

El Paso Walmart shooter gets 90 life terms

The man who shot and killed 23 people at a Texas Walmart parking lot in 2019 was sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences on Friday.

Catch up: On Aug. 3, 2019, Patrick Crusius drove 700 miles from his home in Dallas to an El Paso Walmart where he began shooting people who were raising money for a girls soccer team. He then proceeded inside the store and fired upon shoppers. Cops arrested him at an intersection shortly afterwards where he willingly surrendered and admitted to the crimes.

• Police say he confessed to intentionally targeting Mexicans and posted a racist manifesto online just before the attack.

Driving the news: Crusius pleaded guilty to 90 Federal Hate Crimes and Firearms Violations in February after the federal government said they wouldn’t seek the death penalty.

• Family members of the victims gave statements during the three-day sentencing hearing in El Paso.

• Margaret Juarez, whose father was killed during the attack, said she found it ironic that Crusius will spend the rest of his life locked up with inmates from racial and ethnic minorities. “Swim in the waters of prison,” she told Crusius. “Now we’re going to enjoy the sunshine. … We still have our freedom, in our country.”

Zoom out: The attack was the most lethal among a dozen mass shootings connected to hate crimes since 2006, according to a USA Today/AP database.

What’s next? Crusius’ state court trial hasn’t been scheduled, but prosecutors said they will seek the death penalty.

Business & Economy

U.S. stock markets closed mixed on Friday (S&P -0.29%, Nasdaq +0.01%, Dow -0.3%) ~ All three major averages closed lower for the week due to investors fearing that more interest rates hikes are ahead.

The U.S. added 209,000 jobs in June, which is lower than economists’ predictions. However, consistent wage growth has many believing the Fed will increase interest rates again at the end of the month.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. stock jumped 6% on news that China will impose a $984 million fine on its fintech arm, signaling the years-long probe into the e-commerce giant might be coming to an end.

World

Deforestation has dropped by 36% in Brazil’s Amazon in the first six months of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s term.

Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin may have never left Russia after he was exiled for leading an armed rebellion against Putin’s military leadership. U.S. officials say he could have used a body double to trick Russia into thinking he was in Belarus.

The English tourist who carved a note into the Colosseum in Rome wrote a letter of apology claiming that he didn’t know the 2,000-year-old landmark was ancient.

US News, Politics, & Government

The first of two Iowa teenagers who beat their Spanish teacher to death with a baseball bat in 2021 was sentenced to life in prison with a possibility of parole at 35 years. The pair reportedly attacked Nohema Graber because she gave them a bad grade.

President Joe Biden debuted a new plan to reduce health care costs on Friday, which includes a crackdown on scam insurance plans, instruction on how to prevent surplus medical bills, and an effort to reduce medical debt tied to credit cards.

Marjorie Taylor Green got booted from the House Freedom Caucus. The group said that her fight with Rep. Lauren Bobert on the House floor was part of the reason for her dismissal.

Sports & Entertainment

Catcher Sean Murphy’s 2-run homer against the Rays on Friday gave the Braves its 167th home run of the season - the most recorded by any team before the All-Star break in Major League Baseball History.

Taylor Swift has released a re-recorded version of her 2010 album “Speak Now,” which includes 6 new songs.

Alex Morgan and Lindsey Horan will co-captain the U.S. Women’s National Soccer team at the 2023 World cup. The tournament begins July 20.

Science, Health, & Tech

San Francisco residents, fed up with self-driving cars, are disabling the robo-taxis by placing traffic cones on their hoods. The driverless vehicles are causing problems by stalling in traffic, interfering with first responders, and even knowingly hitting a dog.

Twitter threatened legal action this week against Meta over its new text-based app called Threads, accusing Meta of using Twitter’s trade secrets to create a “copycat” app.

A new HIV case has been linked to “vampire facials” at a shuttered New Mexico spa. During the procedure a patient’s blood is drawn and parts of it are injected back into the face using micro needles.

Watch: A gray whale asking humans to help remove parasites from its head.

California’s deadly zombie lake.

Spain’s annual running of the bulls began yesterday.

Ben & Jerry’s may get the Bud Light treatment after a 4th of July tweet.