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A long-awaited appeal for convicted double murderer Alex Murdaugh was filed Tuesday in the South Carolina Supreme Court. Alex Murdaugh listens as his attorneys Dick Harpootlian, left, and Phil Barber speak during a judicial hearing at The Richland County Judicial Center in Columbia, S.C. on Monday, Jan. 29, 2024. In the 132-plus page brief, Murdaugh’s lawyers lay out two main prongs of attack they say should be grounds for granting Murdaugh a new trial: First, they allege that former Colleton County clerk of court Becky Hill, a state official, improperly swayed one or more jurors to vote to find Murdaugh guilty. Hill’s intrusion denied Murdaugh “infected the trial with unfairness” and denied him his right to a fair trial by an impartial jury, they argue. Second, they allege that the extensive information about Murdaugh’s financial crimes that state Judge Clifton Newman allowed the jury to hear about from 10 witnesses unfairly prejudiced the jury against Murdaugh (Murdaugh had not pleaded guilty to the crimes at that point). Those 10 witnesses testified “over a span of six days” about various Murdaugh financial crimes that involved 19 victims, the brief said. The brief also attacks various evidence offered by prosecution witnesses. The brief was submitted to the State Supreme Court nearly two years after the five-week Murdaugh murder trial, which began in January 2023 and ended in early March of that year. The trial was followed by millions on television, social media and mainstream media. The delay was caused in part by the time it took to prepare a 6,000-page transcript of the three-week trial and by an appeal Murdaugh’s lawyers made to the S.C. Court of Appeals on the alleged jury tampering issue. Normally, appeals in non-death penalty murder cases are first heard by the Court of Appeals. But in this case, Murdaugh’s attorneys sought and received permission from the Supreme Court to appeal directly to the high court. The State Attorney General’s office now has 30 days to file a reply. However, due to the holidays, and the complexity of the issues, the Supreme Court will probably grant an extension if prosecutors request one. The filing is the latest move in a case that shocked and riveted South Carolina and the world with its unexpected twists and fatal blend of violence, family dysfunction, big money and white collar crime. Murdaugh was convicted in March 2023 of murdering his wife Maggie and son Paul in what prosecutors argued was a cold-blooded attempt to distract suspicion from the looming threat of public disclosure that the attorney had stolen millions of dollars from his clients and his family’s 110-year-old law firm. His trial and conviction was a stunning downfall for a fourth-generation member of a prominent South Carolina legal and political family. The murders took place on June 7, 2021, at the dog kennels on the Murdaugh 1,700-acre family estate, called Moselle, just after nightfall, in rural Colleton County. Maggie was killed with an assault rifle; Paul, by a shotgun. No weapons were ever recovered. Murdaugh, 56, who is serving two life sentences for murder in a S.C. prison, claims he is innocent and that someone else did the killing. The appeal comes almost two years after Mardaugh was sentenced to life in prison for shooting and killing his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul. The delay was partly due to a pause put on the normal appeals process while his attorneys attempted to win Murdaugh a new trial following bombshell allegations that Becky Hill, the clerk of court who served on his trial, tampered with the jury. That attempt failed. Hill, who gained a small measure of celebrity during the trial, was accused of encouraging the jury to doubt Murdaugh’s testimony, pressuring the jury to reach a quick verdict and working to ensure a juror who had indicated that she was not convinced of Murdaugh’s guilt be dismissed. After the trial, she published a book based on her insider’s position at the trial, a position in which she oversaw the jury and had confidential conversations with the judge. Her goal, Murdaugh’s attorneys argued, was to ensure Murdaugh’s conviction in order to drive sales of the book she planned to write about the trial. The book was published in August 2023 and later withdrawn from publication after she admitted plagiarizing passages from a BBC’s reporter’s article. At a hearing last January before former South Carolina Supreme Court Justice Jean Toal, Hill denied the charges against her. While Toal found Hill “not completely credible,” she declined to grant Murdaugh a new trial, arguing that the state supreme court did not have the authority to grant a “a new trial in a very lengthy trial such as this on the strength of some fleeting and foolish comments by a publicity-influenced clerk of court But the controversy over Hill’s actions has not died down. Hill resigned from her position as the elected clerk of court and has been facing ethics and criminal investigations into jury tampering and allegations that she abused her position for financial gain . Defense lawyers on Murdaugh’s brief include Dick Harpootlian, Jim Griffin, Phil Barber, Andrew Hand and Maggie Fox. Get local news delivered to your inbox!q777 phone 。

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Ardelyx CFO Justin Renz sells $25,219 in stockNASA's stuck astronauts hit 6 months in space. Just 2 more to goAKRON, Ohio (AP) — Nate Johnson scored 25 points to help Akron defeat Alabama State 97-78 on Sunday. Johnson added five rebounds for the Zips (4-2). Bowen Hardman scored 19 points, shooting 6 for 7 from beyond the arc. Isaiah Gray went 4 of 7 from the field to finish with 11 points. The Hornets (3-3) were led by CJ Hines with 19 points. Tyler Mack added 18 points and Antonio Madlock scored 17. Akron took the lead with 6:46 left in the first half and did not relinquish it. Johnson led their team in scoring with 13 points in the first half to help put them up 50-41 at the break. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

ASCC awards in-house scholarships for Fall 2024The drum is rolling once again for the People's Party (PP), now fired up to win Sunday's local election in Udon Thani, a political heartland of the ruling Pheu Thai Party, which it managed to tap into in last year's general election. The upcoming Provincial Administrative Organisation chairman poll will, without a doubt, be a hard-fought battle for the two largest parties. On the one hand, Pheu Thai must defend its turf, where it secured a clean sweep in several general elections leading up to last year's poll, at all costs. Pride will be at stake, remarked an observer. On the other hand, the PP is pulling out all the stops to capture the PAO chairmanship. Its predecessor, the Move Forward Party, had suffered a series of PAO election defeats prior to being dissolved by the Constitutional Court on Aug 7 for undermining the constitutional monarchy. The MFP was resurrected in the form of the PP, which has continued the PAO losing streak. PAO polls were called in many provinces as a result of respective PAO chairmen having quit their posts before their terms ended. Their resignations were tactical, according to the observer. Several figured that they had a better chance of re-election if they stepped down while they remained popular rather than wait until their terms expired, by which time the competition would be tougher, with many opponents being better prepared to go up against them. The MFP and its ally, the Progressive Movement (PM), were out in force to get acquainted with local voters and promised them reforms, the highlight of which was decentralisation of power whereby people in the provinces could enjoy more control over their administrative and budgetary affairs. Fast forward to today, both the PP and PM have invested heavily in manpower and resources for the PAO chairman race in Udon Thani. This may well be the PP's opportunity to finally score a victory in a PAO contest. The source said PP's optimism is justified. The MFP, after all, had successfully proved more than a match for Pheu Thai in last year's general election in the province and snatched a House seat in the Muang district constituency, which encompasses the downtown area, previously held by the ruling party. The PP is confident this success could be repeated in the PAO poll tomorrow. It is precisely the reason the party has mobilised its heavyweights to garner support for its candidate, Kanisorn Khurirung, a lawyer with the nickname Haew (water chestnut). Mr Kanisorn is no stranger to the local political scene. In fact, he is a seasoned politician and was elected Udon Thani municipal councillor in 2004, a Udon Thani PAO member in 2008 and a PAO vice chairman in 2005. Mr Kanisorn is giving Pheu Thai's candidate, Sarawut Phetphanomporn, a run for his money. Mr Sarawut's electioneering team has been busy putting up campaign posters with Mr Sarawut and Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra in the pictures together. The PP, in the meantime, has roped in personalities like PM chairman Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit and former MFP leader Pita Limjaroenrat to be the star speakers at rallies. The party realises PP leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut has suffered in leading opinion polls. To shore things up, the party flew Mr Pita in from the US where he has taken time off for an academic programme. Mr Pita addressed supporters at a rally last week. Mr Thanathorn has also reportedly made weekly trips to Udon Thani and hit the campaign trail with Mr Kanisorn. Mr Thanathorn has worked from the ground up to build a local support base in the province since 2020. The PM has fielded candidates in all local polls, ranging from PAO chairman, tambon municipal mayor to Tambon Administrative Organisation (TAO) chair contests. His big break came the following year when the PM won TAO chair elections in tambons Na Sa-ard, Thon Na Lub, Phon Sung, Ban Muang and Na Bua. As the PM spread its wings in local politics in Udon Thani, the MFP was going from strength to strength on the MP election front. The party grabbed one of 10 House seats in the province from Pheu Thai, which also lost in two other constituencies to Thai Sang Thai, originally labelled as a Pheu Thai offshoot. It was thought Pheu Thai's impregnability failed thanks to its dwindling support from the red shirts, once the party's backbone. However, almost a decade of Prayut Chan-o-cha administrations had weakened the red-shirt movement, with many members switching allegiance to the MFP at the height of the resistance against the government. In the meantime, the lead-up to the Udon Thani PAO race heated up when former premier Thaksin Shinawatra decided to help Mr Sarawut on the campaign trail. Analysts have predicted a favourable outcome for Pheu Thai in the Udon Thani PAO poll. The ruling party is capitalising on opinion polls that consistently place Ms Paetongtarn ahead of Mr Natthaphong. Also, the recent 10,000-baht handout to the marginalised and underprivileged is likely to help the Pheu Thai candidate. It was reported that Thaksin, dubbed Pheu Thai's de facto leader, has contacted powerful political families in Udon Thani and called on them to back Mr Sarawut. Phichai Ratnatilaka Na Bhuket, programme director for politics and development strategy at the National Institute of Development Administration, told the Bangkok Post that Pheu Thai commands a strong support base in the province. Loyal red-shirt supporters also exist in large numbers. Tagging along with Thaksin on the campaign trail was Yaowapa Wongsawat, one of his younger sisters. She is said to have pulled quite a few strings locally to increase the Pheu Thai candidate's chance of winning. However, Mr Phichai said the PP's candidate is high-profile, which could easily attract voters. Anutin: Agencies doing their job Pheu Thai and Bhumjaithai might not have seen eye to eye on certain issues during their first year as coalition allies, but they managed to ease tensions. The first sign of a rift emerged when former prime minister Srettha Thavisin spoke in favour of reclassifying cannabis as a narcotic -- a reversal of Bhumjaithai's policy to decriminalise the plant, which was successfully implemented in 2022 during the Prayut Chan-o-cha administration. The tensions eased when Pheu Thai compromised by expressing support for the enactment of a bill to regulate cannabis use for medical and research purposes, a move widely seen as a signal that the plant would remain off the narcotic drugs list. Disagreements resurfaced recently over the size of the majority required to pass a charter amendment referendum. The 200-member Senate reversed the House of Representatives' move to use a simple majority instead of a double majority to make it easier for referendums on constitutional amendments to pass. The Senate's move was believed to be backed by the Bhumjaithai Party, considering that more than half of the senators are labelled as having a "blue" affiliation. Blue is the colour of Bhumjaithai. Sometime later, Bhumjaithai abstained from voting to reject the Senate's decision "for the sake of being thorough". The disagreement over the size of the majority required for charter referendums to pass is set to be resolved by a joint House-Senate committee. In the meantime, the Khao Kradong land controversy in Buri Ram, Bhumjaithai's political stronghold, has emerged, with observers suggesting that the dispute between the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) and the Department of Lands (DoL) could escalate into open conflict and strain relations between the two partners. This is because the SRT is under the supervision of Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit of Pheu Thai, while the DoL is overseen by Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, leader of the Bhumjaithai Party. Additionally, the Chidchob family, which runs several businesses, including the Buriram International Circuit and a 32,600-seat football stadium, is reportedly linked to the controversy. The dispute centres on land plots totalling 5,083 rai in the Khao Kradong area of Muang district of Buri Ram. The SRT is seeking to reclaim these plots, accusing the DoL of malfeasance for issuing land papers to illegal occupants. The SRT filed a case with the Administrative Court in September 2021 demanding the DoL revoke its 900 land title deeds and remove all occupants from its property after the Supreme Court stated that the land belonged to the SRT in 2021. Of the 900 land title deeds, 12, which cover 179 rai, reportedly belonged to the Chidchob family. The Administrative Court ruled in the SRT's favour, and the DoL set up a committee under Section 61 of the Land Code to examine the boundaries of Khao Kradong following the court's order. The DoL committee resolved not to revoke the land documents, while the SRT took swift action by appealing the DoL decision on the orders of Mr Suriya, sparking speculation about the possibility of a renewed conflict between the two biggest coalition partners. However, key figures from both parties, especially Mr Anutin, have brushed aside speculation about the state agencies' dispute escalating into open conflict between Pheu Thai and Bhumjaithai. According to Mr Anutin, the agencies involved are simply doing their job, and the DoL's handling of the Khao Kradong land complies with the law. He noted that he could not answer all the questions about Khao Kradong because he did not ask the DoL for specifics, as doing so might be seen as pressuring the department. Addressing the question that some members of the land boundary examination committee have ties to the Chidchob family, Mr Anutin explained that the panel was established in May 2023 when he served as the public health minister in the Prayut Chan-o-cha administration. He did not become interior minister until Srettha Thavisin became premier months later. He pointed out that the Interior Ministry during the Prayut Chan-o-cha government was run by Gen Anupong Paojinda and that he could not possibly exert influence on Gen Anupong. "If you let things be politicised at every turn, it will be chaotic like this. "Some people criticise me for contradicting Mr Suriya, who insisted that the SRT can't lose the land. What he [Mr Suriya] said is 100% correct ... similar to what I said about Koh Kut," he said, referring to the ongoing territorial claim dispute with Cambodia. When asked if the Khao Kradong land controversy is being turned into a political game following earlier Pheu Thai-Bhumjaithai tensions, the Bhumjaithai leader said the coalition partners are politically mature, and there was no point in seeking revenge.

It's 'The End' but deep underground, a sheltered family keeps on singing in denial

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is weighing whether to issue sweeping pardons for officials and allies who the White House fears could be unjustly targeted by President-elect Donald Trump’s administration, a preemptive move that would be a novel and risky use of the president’s extraordinary constitutional power. The deliberations so far are largely at the level of White House lawyers. But Biden himself has discussed the topic with some senior aides, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity Thursday to discuss the sensitive subject. No decisions have been made, the people said, and it is possible Biden opts to do nothing at all. Pardons are historically afforded to those accused of specific crimes – and usually those who have already been convicted of an offense — but Biden’s team is considering issuing them for those who have not even been investigated, let alone charged. They fear that Trump and his allies, who have boasted of enemies lists and exacting “retribution,” could launch investigations that would be reputationally and financially costly for their targets even if they don’t result in prosecutions. While the president’s pardon power is absolute, Biden’s use in this fashion would mark a significant expansion of how they are deployed, and some Biden aides fear it could lay the groundwork for an even more drastic usage by Trump. They also worry that issuing pardons would feed into claims by Trump and his allies that the individuals committed acts that necessitated immunity. Recipients could include infectious-disease specialist Dr. Anthony Fauci, who was instrumental in combating the coronavirus pandemic and who has become a pariah to conservatives angry about mask mandates and vaccines. Others include witnesses in Trump’s criminal or civil trials and Biden administration officials who have drawn the ire of the incoming president and his allies. Some fearful former officials have reached out to the Biden White House preemptively seeking some sort of protection from the future Trump administration, one of the people said. It follows Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter — not just for his convictions on federal gun and tax violations, but for any potential federal offense committed over an 11-year period, as the president feared that Trump allies would seek to prosecute his son for other offenses. That could serve as a model for other pardons Biden might issue to those who could find themselves in legal jeopardy under Trump. Biden is not the first to consider such pardons — Trump aides considered them for him and his supporters involved in his failed efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election that culminated in a violent riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. But he could be the first to issue them since Trump’s pardons never materialized before he left office nearly four years ago. Gerald Ford granted a “full, free, and absolute pardon” in 1974 to his predecessor, Richard Nixon, over the Watergate scandal. He believed a potential trial would “cause prolonged and divisive debate over the propriety of exposing to further punishment and degradation a man who has already paid the unprecedented penalty of relinquishing the highest elective office of the United States," as written in the pardon proclamation. Politico was first to report that Biden was studying the use of preemptive pardons. On the campaign trail, Trump made no secret of his desire to seek revenge on those who prosecuted him or crossed him. Trump has talked about “enemies from within" and circulated social media posts that call for the jailing of Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, former Vice President Mike Pence and Sens. Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer. He also zeroed in on former Rep. Liz Cheney, a conservative Republican who campaigned for Harris and helped investigate Jan. 6, and he promoted a social media post that suggested he wanted military tribunals for supposed treason. Kash Patel, whom Trump has announced as his nominee to be director of the FBI, has listed dozens of former government officials he wanted to “come after.” Richard Painter, a Trump critic who served as the top White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said he was reluctantly in support of having Biden issue sweeping pardons to people who could be targeted by Trump's administration. He said he hoped that would “clean the slate” for the incoming president and encourage him to focus on governing, not on punishing his political allies. “It’s not an ideal situation at all,” Painter said. “We have a whole lot of bad options confronting us at this point.” While the Supreme Court this year ruled that the president enjoys broad immunity from prosecution for what could be considered official acts, his aides and allies enjoy no such shield. Some fear that Trump could use the promise of a blanket pardon to encourage his allies to take actions they might otherwise resist for fear of running afoul of the law. “There could be blatant illegal conduct over the next four years, and he can go out and pardon his people before he leaves office,” Painter said. "But if he’s going to do that, he’s going to do that anyway regardless of what Biden does." More conventional pardons from Biden, such as those for sentencing disparities for people convicted of federal crimes, are expected before the end of the year, the White House said.

Luigi Nicholas Mangione, the suspect in the fatal shooting of a healthcare executive in New York City, apparently was living a charmed life: the grandson of a wealthy real estate developer, valedictorian of his elite Baltimore prep school and with degrees from one of the nation's top private universities. Friends at an exclusive co-living space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Hawaii where the 26-year-old Mangione once lived widely considered him a “great guy,” and pictures on his social media accounts show a fit, smiling, handsome young man on beaches and at parties. Now, investigators in New York and Pennsylvania are working to piece together why Mangione may have diverged from this path to make the violent and radical decision to gun down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a brazen attack on a Manhattan street. The killing sparked widespread discussions about corporate greed, unfairness in the medical insurance industry and even inspired folk-hero sentiment toward his killer. But Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro sharply refuted that perception after Mangione's arrest on Monday when a customer at a McDonald's restaurant in Pennsylvania spotted Mangione eating and noticed he resembled the shooting suspect in security-camera photos released by New York police. “In some dark corners, this killer is being hailed as a hero. Hear me on this, he is no hero,” Shapiro said. “The real hero in this story is the person who called 911 at McDonald’s this morning.” Mangione comes from a prominent Maryland family. His grandfather, Nick Mangione, who died in 2008, was a successful real estate developer. One of his best-known projects was Turf Valley Resort, a sprawling luxury retreat and conference center outside Baltimore that he purchased in 1978. The Mangione family also purchased Hayfields Country Club north of Baltimore in 1986. On Monday, Baltimore County police officers blocked off an entrance to the property, which public records link to Luigi Mangione’s parents. Reporters and photographers gathered outside the entrance. The father of 10 children, Nick Mangione prepared his five sons — including Luigi Mangione’s father, Louis Mangione — to help manage the family business, according to a 2003 Washington Post report. Nick Mangione had 37 grandchildren, including Luigi, according to the grandfather's obituary. Luigi Mangione’s grandparents donated to charities through the Mangione Family Foundation, according to a statement from Loyola University commemorating Nick Mangione’s wife’s death in 2023. They donated to various causes, including Catholic organizations, colleges and the arts. One of Luigi Mangione’s cousins is Republican Maryland state legislator Nino Mangione, a spokesman for the lawmaker’s office confirmed. “Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest,” Mangione’s family said in a statement posted on social media by Nino Mangione. “We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.” Mangione, who was valedictorian of his elite Maryland prep school, earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in computer science in 2020 from the University of Pennsylvania, a university spokesman told The Associated Press. He learned to code in high school and helped start a club at Penn for people interested in gaming and game design, according to a 2018 story in Penn Today, a campus publication. His social media posts suggest he belonged to the fraternity Phi Kappa Psi. They also show him taking part in a 2019 program at Stanford University, and in photos with family and friends at the Jersey Shore and in Hawaii, San Diego, Puerto Rico, and other destinations. The Gilman School, from which Mangione graduated in 2016, is one of Baltimore’s elite prep schools. The children of some of the city’s wealthiest and most prominent residents, including Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr., have attended the school. Its alumni include sportswriter Frank Deford and former Arizona Gov. Fife Symington. In his valedictory speech, Luigi Mangione described his classmates’ “incredible courage to explore the unknown and try new things.” Mangione took a software programming internship after high school at Maryland-based video game studio Firaxis, where he fixed bugs on the hit strategy game Civilization 6, according to a LinkedIn profile. Firaxis' parent company, Take-Two Interactive, said it would not comment on former employees. He more recently worked at the car-buying website TrueCar, but has not worked there since 2023, the head of the Santa Monica, California-based company confirmed to the AP. From January to June 2022, Mangione lived at Surfbreak, a “co-living” space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Honolulu. Like other residents of the shared penthouse catering to remote workers, Mangione underwent a background check, said Josiah Ryan, a spokesperson for owner and founder R.J. Martin. “Luigi was just widely considered to be a great guy. There were no complaints,” Ryan said. “There was no sign that might point to these alleged crimes they’re saying he committed.” At Surfbreak, Martin learned Mangione had severe back pain from childhood that interfered with many aspects of his life, including surfing, Ryan said. “He went surfing with R.J. once but it didn’t work out because of his back,” Ryan said, but noted that Mangione and Martin often went together to a rock-climbing gym. Mangione left Surfbreak to get surgery on the mainland, Ryan said, then later returned to Honolulu and rented an apartment. An image posted to a social media account linked to Mangione showed what appeared to be an X-ray of a metal rod and multiple screws inserted into someone's lower spine. Martin stopped hearing from Mangione six months to a year ago. An X account linked to Mangione includes recent posts about the negative impact of smartphones on children; healthy eating and exercise habits; psychological theories; and a quote from Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti about the dangers of becoming “well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” Mangione likely was motivated by his anger at what he called “parasitic” health insurance companies and a disdain for corporate greed, according to a law enforcement bulletin obtained by AP. He wrote that the U.S. has the most expensive healthcare system in the world and that the profits of major corporations continue to rise while “our life expectancy” does not, according to the bulletin, based on a review of the suspect’s handwritten notes and social media posts. He appeared to view the targeted killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO as a symbolic takedown, asserting in his note that he is the “first to face it with such brutal honesty,” the bulletin said. Mangione called “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski a “political revolutionary” and may have found inspiration from the man who carried out a series of bombings while railing against modern society and technology, the document said. Associated Press reporters Lea Skene in Baltimore; Jennifer Sinco Kelleher in Honolulu; Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; and Michael Kunzelman in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.NEW YORK, Dec. 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Insight Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: INAQ) announced today that its stockholders have approved an extension of the time period by which the Company has to consummate an initial business combination (the “Business Combination Period”) from December 7, 2024, to March 7, 2025 (the "Extended Termination Date"). The extension was made through the adoption of the Fourth Extension Amendment to the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation (the “Charter”), which was filed today with the Delaware Secretary of State. Adoption of the Fourth Extension Amendment required approval by the affirmative vote of at least 65% of the Company’s outstanding shares of common stock. The proposal was approved by the Company’s stockholders holding 4,950,037 shares, representing approximately 75.93% of the Company's outstanding shares of common stock. About Insight Acquisition Corp. Insight Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: INAQ) is a special purpose acquisition company formed solely to effect a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. Insight Acquisition Corp. is sponsored by Insight Acquisition Sponsor LLC. For additional information, please visit insightacqcorp.com. About Alpha Modus Alpha Modus is engaged in creating, developing and licensing data-driven technologies to enhance consumers' in-store digital experience at the point of decision. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Cornelius, North Carolina. Alpha Modus is party to a business combination agreement with Insight Acquisition Corp. ( INAQ ) whereby Alpha Modus plans to become a publicly trading company (the “Business Combination”). For additional information, please visit alphamodus.com . Contacts: Insight Acquisition Corp. Chelsea Saffran csaffran@Insightacqcorp.com Alpha Modus Shannon Devine MZ Group +1(203) 741-8841 shannon.devine@mzgroup.us

President-elect Donald Trump will return to power next year with a raft of technological tools at his disposal that would help deliver his campaign promise of — among them, surveillance and artificial intelligence technology that the Biden administration already uses to help make crucial decisions in tracking, detaining and ultimately deporting immigrants lacking permanent legal status. While immigration officials have used the tech for years, an October letter from the Department of Homeland Security obtained exclusively by The Associated Press details how those tools — some of them powered by AI — help make life-altering decisions for immigrants, including whether they should be detained or surveilled. One algorithm, for example, ranks immigrants with a “Hurricane Score,” ranging from 1-5, to assess whether someone will “abscond” from the agency’s supervision. The letter, sent by DHS Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer Eric Hysen to the immigrant rights group Just Futures Law, revealed that the score calculates the potential risk that an immigrant — with a pending case — will fail to check in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. The algorithm relies on several factors, he said, including an immigrant’s number of violations and length of time in the program, and whether the person has a travel document. Hysen wrote that ICE officers consider the score, among other information, when making decisions about an immigrant’s case. “The Hurricane Score does not make decisions on detention, deportation, or surveillance; instead, it is used to inform human decision-making,” Hysen wrote. Also included in the government’s tool kit is a mobile app called SmartLINK that uses facial matching and can track an immigrant’s specific location. Nearly 200,000 people without legal status who are in removal proceedings are enrolled in the Alternatives to Detention program, under which certain immigrants can live in the U.S. while their immigration cases are pending. In exchange, SmartLINK and GPS trackers used by ICE rigorously surveil them and their movements. The phone application draws on facial matching technology and geolocation data, which has been used before to find and arrest those using the app. Just Futures Law wrote to Hysen earlier this year, questioning the fairness of using an algorithm to assess whether someone is a flight risk and raising concerns over how much data SmartLINK collects. Such AI systems, which score or screen people, are used widely but remain largely unregulated even though some have been found to discriminate on race, gender or other protected traits. DHS said in an email that it is committed to ensuring that its use of AI is transparent and safeguards privacy and civil rights while avoiding biases. The agency said it is working to implement the Biden administration’s , but Hysen said in his letter that security officials may waive those requirements for certain uses. Trump has publicly when he returns to the White House in January. “DHS uses AI to assist our personnel in their work, but DHS does not use the outputs of AI systems as the sole basis for any law enforcement action or denial of benefits,” a spokesperson for DHS told the AP. Trump has not revealed how he plans to carry out his promised deportation of an estimated 11 million people living in the country illegally. Although he has proposed invoking wartime powers, as well as military involvement, the plan would face major logistical challenges — such as where to keep those who have been detained and how to find people spread across the country — that AI-powered surveillance tools could potentially address. Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for Trump, did not answer questions about how they plan to use DHS’ tech, but said in a statement that “President Trump will marshal every federal and state power necessary to institute the largest deportation operation” in American history. Over 100 civil society groups sent a letter on Friday urging the Office of Management and Budget to require DHS to comply with the Biden administration’s guidelines. OMB did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Just Futures Law’s executive director, Paromita Shah, said if immigrants are scored as flight risks, they are more likely to remain in detention, “limiting their ability to prepare a defense in their case in immigration court, which is already difficult enough as it is.” SmartLINK, part of the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, is run by BI Inc., a subsidiary of the private prison company The GEO Group. The GEO Group also contracts with ICE to run detention centers. ICE is tight-lipped about how it uses SmartLINK’s location feature to find and arrest immigrants. Still, public records show that during Trump’s first term in 2018, Manassas, Virginia-based employees of BI Inc. relayed immigrants’ GPS locations to federal authorities, who then arrested over 40 people. In a report last year to address privacy issues and concerns, DHS said that the mobile app includes security features that “prohibit access to information on the participant’s mobile device, with the exception of location data points when the app is open.” But the report notes that there remains a risk that data collected from people “may be misused for unauthorized persistent monitoring.” Such information could also be stored in other ICE and DHS databases and used for other DHS mission purposes, the report said. On investor calls earlier this month, private prison companies were clear-eyed about the opportunities ahead. The GEO Group’s executive chairman George Christopher Zoley said that he expects the incoming Trump administration to “take a much more aggressive approach regarding border security as well as interior enforcement and to request additional funding from Congress to achieve these goals.” “In GEO’s ISAP program, we can scale up from the present 182,500 participants to several hundreds of thousands, or even millions of participants,” Zoley said. That same day, the head of another private prison company told investors he would be watching closely to see how the new administration may change immigrant monitoring programs. “It’s an opportunity for multiple vendors to engage ICE about the program going forward and think about creative and innovative solutions to not only get better outcomes, but also scale up the program as necessary,” Damon Hininger, CEO of the private prison company CoreCivic Inc. said on an earnings call. GEO did not respond to requests for comment. In a statement, CoreCivic said that it has played “a valued but limited role in America’s immigration system” for both Democrats and Republicans for over 40 years. Sarah Parvini, Garance Burke And Jesse Bedayn, The Associated PressLSU trailed by 18 points early in the second half, then failed to hold a lead at the end of regulation and each of the first two overtime periods. The Tigers went up by five with a minute to go in the third overtime. UCF cut it to three, then Vyctorius Miller made a driving layup, Jordan Sears followed with a dunk and the Tigers were able to hold on when leading by seven. Cam Carter scored 20 points, Miller had 16 and Dji Bailey 14 for LSU (5-1). Darius Johnson had 25 points, eight assists and six rebounds for UCF (4-2). Keyshawn Hall had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Jordan Ivy-Curry scored 20. South Florida led by 15 points at halftime and maintained a double-digit lead for all but a few possessions in the first 11 1/2 minutes of the second half. UCF led 62-48 with 8 1/2 minutes remaining but Sears hit three 3-pointers and LSU drew to within 64-59 with 6 minutes to go. The Tigers scored the last six points of regulation to force overtime. In the first half, LSU led 15-13 about eight minutes into the game but the Tigers missed 15 of 16 shots while being outscored 25-3 over the next 10 minutes. South Florida led 40-25 at halftime after shooting 46% to 25% for LSU. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketballHoliday gift ideas for the movie lover, from bios and books to a status tote