Good morning! The weekend edition is 638 words, a 3-minute read.

What’s on tap: 

• American missionary released

• Town Santa donates his kidney

• Missing Mozarts

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Today’s Big Story

Mangione Pleads Guilty

• Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty Friday to two federal stalking charges in the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. For the first time, Mangione admitted in court that he posed as a potential investor to confirm the location of a UnitedHealthcare conference and track Thompson before shooting him in Manhattan.

• Mangione told the court he was motivated by his experience with the healthcare system following a back injury, although prosecutors have said he had no personal connection to UnitedHealthcare and was never a customer. He faces up to life in prison, while prosecutors are recommending roughly 24 to 30 years. Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 18.

• The plea does not resolve Mangione's separate New York case, where he still faces second-degree murder and firearms charges. His attorneys are seeking to have those charges dismissed, arguing that prosecuting him for the same conduct after his federal guilty plea would violate New York's double-jeopardy protections.

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Saturday’s Quick Hits

• A woman was arrested and charged with two federal felonies after Washington’s World War II Memorial was vandalized with red graffiti and its fountain filled with soapy bubbles. Prosecutors identified the suspect as Melissa Farris and said the charges carry penalties of up to 10 years in prison. (More)

• Italian authorities recovered three paintings by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse stolen from a private museum near Parma in March. The works are worth roughly $10.5 million combined, including a Cézanne valued at $7 million. Thieves reportedly stole the paintings in under three minutes before escaping through the museum gardens. (More)

• American missionary Kevin Rideout was released after nearly 10 months in captivity following his abduction outside his home in Niger’s capital last October. SIM International said Rideout, who had worked in Niger for 19 years, is in good health and in U.S. custody. No details about his release were disclosed. (More)

• European regulators approved the first commercial sales of Prima, a retinal implant designed to restore central vision in people with advanced age-related macular degeneration. In a 38-patient trial, 84% regained functional central vision, allowing them to read letters, numbers and words. Its developer is pursuing FDA approval in the U.S. (More)

• Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed legislation eliminating the state’s previous restriction on abortions at or after 24 weeks. The new law, which takes effect in 90 days, allows physicians to perform abortions based on their professional judgment, giving Massachusetts one of the country’s broadest abortion laws. (More)

• President Trump ordered the Navy to replace electromagnetic aircraft-launch systems with older steam catapults on future Ford-class aircraft carriers, a change expected to cost billions. The USS Doris Miller would be the first affected carrier, despite its electromagnetic launch equipment already being halfway complete. (ffa9f3ce102ecd5d6126db03e901a56f)

Weekly Dose of Positive

• More than 80% of India’s rural households now have tap water, up from just 16.7% when the government launched its nationwide water-access initiative in 2019. (More)

• Seven rescued beluga whales arrived at SeaWorld San Antonio after a nearly 2,000-mile journey from a shuttered Canadian marine park, joining two males relocated there last month. (More)

• Leonardo DiCaprio’s Re:wild and the Bezos Earth Fund committed $200 million to help recover 100 species facing imminent extinction, providing each conservation effort with five years of sustained funding. (More)

• A Virginia man who plays Santa every Christmas donated one of his kidneys to an anonymous recipient, saying, “I have two of these things, and I only need one.” (More)

Extra Credit

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