NY News Update - Harvey Weinstein trial jury selection begins, second Columbia student arrested
Apr 15, 2025
In this NY News Update, we take a look at jury selection beginning in the trial of disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, Harvard University defying demands from the Trump administration, and a look inside the Peeps factory ahead of Easter.
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This is the Fox 5 News Block
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Well, disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein back in a New York courtroom today as a jury
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selection begins in the retrial for his sexual misconduct. And a second Columbia student and pro-Palestinian activist has been arrested by ICE for his
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involvement in last year's Gaza protests. Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Sharon Proley and welcome to the News Block
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Those stories all in just a moment. But first, let's take a look outside right now
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Is spring going to ever get here and stay here, Nick? What do you think? Well, it's here now
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But again, it's definitely been a changeable forecast, we'll say, Sharon. And, you know, we made it into the upper 60s, so it's nice and mild
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A little bit of sunshine at times, a fair amount of clouds, too. 71 the warm spot at Newark
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61, though, Bridgeport to Hartford. And 50 in Scranton. That gives you a sign of what something's happening out there
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We do have a little disturbance coming by. Winds are picking up speed 10 to 20 and gusty
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gusts, particularly west now, are gusting up to 35 to near 40 miles per hour. That's going to
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overspread the entire area this evening. And that's why we do have a wind advisory that is in effect
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basically is going to run all night into tomorrow. That's probably extended to the entire area
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not just including New Jersey and Pennsylvania. And here comes the potential for some isolated
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showers, even a thunderstorm this afternoon in the early evening time frame. That also could
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produce some local damaging wind gusts and maybe even a little spotty hail with those storms kind
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of rolling on through. So we'll watch that in the future cast that kind of goes through later tonight
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Again, some clearing comes in, but it's windy tomorrow. A little sun in the morning, then a lot
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of clouds for the rest of the day. A windy day and a much cooler day only in the lower 50s, but we do
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start warming things back up again as we head on into the forecast for the end of the week. Tonight
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does turn cooler. 30 suburbs, low 40s, midtown, that early shower and thunderstorm in parts of the area
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Sharon? All right. Thanks, Nick. Well, developing news at this hour. Jury selection has begun today
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in the retrial of Harvey Weinstein on felony sex crimes. Last year, the New York Appeals Court judge threw out Weinstein's 2020 conviction
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because of witness irregularities in order to retrial. Well, since then, he's been held at Rikers Island
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and today he came into the courtroom in a wheelchair. The 73-year-old has pleaded not guilty and denies raping or sexually assaulting anyone
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An attorney for one of the complainants spoke with us, and here's what she had to say
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But you're also going to hear from a new woman, my client Jane Doe, also known as complaining witness number three
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Harvey Weinstein was indicted for criminal sexual act in the first degree for sexually assaulting my client in a Manhattan hotel room in spring of 2006
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As she has told me her experience and again told the DA her experiences, one thing has been crystal clear
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that this was not consensual. Well, some prospective jurors made it clear they couldn't
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be fair in judging the one-time Hollywood mogul. Also developing at this hour, protesters gathering
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in Foley Square today after the detainment of a second Columbia University graduate student
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Eyes off our campus now Eyes off our campus now Hands off our stupid Free free free Palestine Demonstrators as you can hear calling it another illegal arrest
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Mohsen Madawi thought he was taking a step toward becoming a U.S. citizen yesterday when
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he arrived for his U.S. naturalization interview in Vermont. Instead, he was arrested by ICE
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Madawi has a green card and is a student at Columbia University where he organized and
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took part in student protests against the Middle East war on campus last year
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We are out here today demanding the release of Mohsen Madawi. We have been out in the streets
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for every student activist that has been illegally abducted and detained simply for
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protesting the genocide in Gaza. We're here to say that protesting a genocide and an occupation
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is not a crime. Well, a Vermont federal judge has ordered that Madawi remain in the U.S. His
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lawyers are still trying to find him. The Trump administration says the pro-Palestinian and pro-Hamas
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demonstrator sparked a rise in anti-Semitism across the country. And this arrest coming as
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the Trump administration is freezing billions of dollars in federal funds to Harvard University
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after the school refused to comply with President Trump's new terms to limit campus activism
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Fox's Rebecca Castor has the latest from Washington now. The Trump administration is not soon forgetting the widespread pro-Palestine protest that swept across university campuses last year
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Some of the international student leaders are facing deportation, and now federal funding is on the line
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We have been addressing the issue of anti-Semitism on campuses. There's been some grant funding and contract funding that we've reviewed, and some canceled, and some we've put on hold
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Harvard is the latest school to have billions in federal grants and contracts put on hold
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after university leaders refused government demands, including to eliminate DEI programs, report foreign students here on visas who violate codes of conduct
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and return to merit-based hiring and admissions. These higher-ed institutions that have fundamentally lost their way
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U.S. taxpayer dollars should never be propping up anti-Semitism. Harvard is the seventh school targeted by the Trump administration
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but it's the first to push back, with the university's president saying in part, quote
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no government, regardless of which party is in power, should dictate what private universities
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can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue
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Harvard University today said, go to hell. Harvard's move also drawing praise from alum and former president Barack Obama
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who says other institutions should follow suit. Harvard says it has already taken action against
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anti-Semitism on campus and argues many of Trump's demands are not related. In Washington
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Rebecca Castor, Fox News. And former President Joe Biden is returning to the national stage
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tonight to highlight concerns he says that Democrats have about President Trump's agenda
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He says that Trump agenda is now threatening Social Security The former president is speaking at the National Conference of Advocates and Counselors and Representatives for the Disabled in Chicago This will be Biden first public speaking engagement since leaving the White House in January Reps for Biden say he is planning in his remarks tonight to fight back
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against any planned cuts to Social Security, an issue Democrats could be using to define
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next year's midterm elections. The White House press secretary saying just a short time ago
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that President Trump does not plan to cut any entitlements. Well, the second round of talks between the U.S. and Iran are about to take place
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over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program. A second U.S. aircraft carrier is now in the Arabian Sea to back up the USS Harry Truman
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which has been launching airstrikes against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. American officials say the operation is a means to pressure Iran into negotiations
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And developing news, a key witness testifying today in the Gilgo Beach serial murder trial
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The co-founder of the California Lab, whose nuclear DNA extraction method is at the center of this case, is taking the stand
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It's part of the series of court dates to determine whether the DNA can be used as evidence at a trial for alleged killer Rex Hureman
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Hureman is facing four counts of murder connected to four bodies found at Gilgo Beach, Long Island
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He has pled not guilty. And today, the NTSB held a board meeting determining the probable cause of the 2023
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fire aboard the container ship in the Port of Newark. Federal investigators say that the deadly
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fire was ignited by a Jeep that dripped flaming fireballs as it strained beyond its capacity to
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push onto the ship. Now, the board also said a carbon dioxide fire suppression system was
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ineffective because a garage door had to be closed for it to operate correctly
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Two firefighters died. Six were injured. The fire burned for several days before being extinguished
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Okay, if you haven't done it yet, the clock is ticking. The deadline to file those federal
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income taxes for most Americans is today. An extension, though, will allow taxpayers to file
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their 2024 returns until October 15th without any penalties. It does not buy you any more time to
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pay if you expect that you owe the government money. The IRS says the payment should be sent
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immediately to avoid interest and other penalties. And we'll be right back
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here there everywhere reliable internet where you need it most prices start at 30 per month
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when bundled go to spectrum.com to learn more and welcome back well if you love them or you hate them
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and i love them yes i do peeps are a signature suite around easter time and the company that
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creates the brightly colored treat typically makes five and a half million every day fox's
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Gary Bumgarten brings us behind the scenes to see how those peeps are made Easter is often associated with bright colors and sweet treats something food manufacturer Just Born Quality Confections is quite familiar with The company
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makes a variety of candies, including Mike and Ike's and hot tamales, but its classic chicks
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and bunnies might be its best known product, especially during Easter. We make five and a
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half million peeps every single day, which is approximately two billion peeps per year. The
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The company relies on just four ingredients to make its signature treat
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We have sugar, corn syrup, gelatin, and air. They are cooked and mixed and whipped together
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Producing the brightly colored marshmallow treats has gotten much faster since Peeps were first invented in 1953
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Peeps used to take 27 hours to make just one Peeps chick. Now it takes only six minutes
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Most of the modern peep-making process consists of cooling down after being pumped into its classic shapes and dusted with brightly colored sugar
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Then there is an overwrap protective film that they get wrapped, put in their cases, and then shipped off to our retailers and our fans
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The company says its original color, yellow, is its bestseller, but the variety of colors and flavors help them stand out during the Easter season
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They are just such cute characters. They have beautiful colors. They're fun shapes. They're perfect for the spring season
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The sweet treats could also be hopping into more Easter baskets this year, as some consumers are looking for alternatives to dying eggs amid soaring prices
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We think that peeps have become such a cultural icon because they have been passed down through generations
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Gary Baumgarten, Fox News. That's delicious. Okay, well, for the next 20 days, millions of viewers are expected to tune in to this Swedish hit, the Great Moose Migration
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There it is. The live stream airs 24 hours a day and follows moose as they swim across the river during their annual spring migration
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Crews use dozens of cameras, as you can see there, and almost 12 miles of cable to get this job done
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Last year, the production hit 9 million viewers on the broadcaster's streaming platform
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And Easter, we're learning not just for people. Meerkats and raccoons go on an Easter egg hunt at a German zoo
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Take a look. The animals searched high and low, even sniffed around looking for hidden treats
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Some meerkats even got their heads stuck inside the eggs during the hunt. They were filled not with sugar, but mealworms for the meerkats and hard-boiled eggs for the raccoons
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All right. I think I prefer the migration story, Nick. Yeah. Although those little guys are cute, though, too
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So there you go. What's the weather forecast on Easter? Easter actually looks pretty good
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It looks like it will be mild season. Temperatures, lower 60s. We'll show you that in a second in our seventh day
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But getting there, still a couple of bumps in the road. One of them is this evening. Winds start to pick up now
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It's out of the west, southwest to west, about 10 to 15. Got a little disturbance moving by
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Winds are going to be picking up in speed already to the west. you see the gusts are now hitting close to 40 miles per hour
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And that's going to overspread the entire area as we go into the evening and into tomorrow
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which is why right now the wind advisory really just covers North Jersey. And again, it extends into portions of eastern Pennsylvania pretty much right through 8 o'clock tomorrow
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Like I said, it's going to extend usually when that starts to happen, the whole 8
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