1 day agoUSA UpdateComments Off on Beloved chain that’s ‘better than Trader Joe’s’ set to open two new stores this month – first customers get free gift
A POPULAR fresh produce chain is set to open two new locations later this month with the first few shoppers getting an added bonus.
Whole Foods will be cutting the ribbon on two new stores in two different states.
GettyWhole Foods is opening two new locations this months (stock)[/caption]
Shoppers will be given more access to fresh and locally-sourced produce (stock)Reuters
One will arrive in Illinois and the other will open in Miami the following day.
The food retailer that fans say is “better than Trader Joe’s” is working to expand its footprint.
Whole Foods currently operates over 520 stores across the country, with the majority in California.
The two new arrivals mark a move to continue expanding out of the Golden state.
The St. Charles, Illinois location will welcome its first customers from 9 am on June 25.
From then on, the regular store hours will be 8 am to 10 pm and shoppers will be able to get over “650 products from the Midwest,” the company proudly announced.
Perks of the location include locally sourced goods, a specialty department celebrating cheesemakers and artisan producers, and full-service meat and seafood counters.
Meanwhile, the Midtown Miami location will open on June 26 at 9 am.
Regular store hours from then on will be 7:30 am to 10 pm and shoppers can get over 500 local items from more than 130 Florida suppliers.
The new store will “celebrate the vibrant spirit of the surrounding Miami area,” Whole Foods said in a statement.
Caffeine lovers will be able to enjoy a “full-service coffee bar featuring Cuban-style coffee drinks, including the Cubano, Cortadito and Café con Leche” as well as several other offerings, the company said.
Meanwhile, on the opening days of both stores, the first few shoppers will get a free gift.
The first 300 people to arrive at either location will get a custom tote bag and a Secret Saver coupon offering up to $100 off.
There will also be complimentary coffee and breakfast items on offer.
“Whole Foods wayyyyy better than Trader Joe’s,” one fan wrote on X.
“Looking forward to this!” an excited St. Charles local wrote on Facebook.
Another said the store will be “a great addition to the area”.
“Can’t wait!!” a third added.
Meanwhile, shoppers have been left baffled after a new Trader Joe’s location opened directly across the street from an existing store.
And foodies are getting excited as a Buc-ee’s rival with the “best pizza” is set to open seven new locations across one state.
AlamyFans have said the chain is ‘better than Trader Joe’s’ (stock)[/caption]
1 day agoUSA UpdateComments Off on Trump parade LIVE: Crowds begin to gather in Washington DC for Donald Trump’s historic US Army birthday parade
DONALD Trump is set to kick off a massive military parade in Washington today to celebrate the US Army’s 250th anniversary – on his birthday.
Crowds have started to gather for the historic military parade, which will see thousands of troops flanked by battle tanks and World War two planes march on the streets.
ReutersPeople walk with the Washington Monument on the background on the day of a military parade[/caption]
ReutersPeople wear hats dedicated to the US Army’s 250th anniversary on the day of the parade[/caption]
ReutersA person wears a hat with US flags on the day of the military parade[/caption]
ReutersA supporter of President Donald Trump wears a hat with US flags on the day of the military parade[/caption]
As many as 7,000 troops and seven band contingents have reportedly been called to participate in the show.
They will be accompanied by at least 150 military vehicles and some 50 aircraft.
Some 2,000 civilians could also take march alongside the US military.
The Army expects as many as 200,000 people could attend the festival and parade.
For years, the president is said to have had his eyes on a full-blown military show, but has failed to put up a working plan – until now.
Plans are to roll down battle tanks, massive military equipment, and aircraft and missiles, just as Trump first envisioned the parade during his first term.
Among the military equipment set to be flaunted are M1A1 Abrams tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, World War II Sherman tanks and four WWII-era P-51 aircraft.
The whole celebration will be enclosed with an 18-mile ring of steel to protect the parade.
Drones and a small army of cops will be on hand to keep order – with there expected to be protests across the country as part of “No Kings” day, a series of anti-Trump rallies by people objecting to the parade.
1 day agoUSA UpdateComments Off on Diddy risks a SECOND trial even if he wins over jury members but won’t chance ‘waterfall of pain’ on stand, expert says
SEAN ‘Diddy’ Combs’ sex-trafficking case could result in a hung jury and second trial as the prosecution has a lot more to prove, an expert has told The U.S. Sun.
The disgraced music mogul, 55, is currently on trial in New York and facing life behind bars if convicted.
GettySean ‘Diddy’ Combs at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas[/caption]
ReutersA sketch of Sean “Diddy” Combs during his sex trafficking trial in New York on June 4, 2025[/caption]
GettyA person wearing a ‘Free Puff’ sweatshirt arrives for the start of the trial at Manhattan Federal Court[/caption]
He’s pleaded not guilty to charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transportation to engage in prostitution, as prosecutors alleged his business empire was also a criminal enterprise.
Combs’ trial has been ongoing for more than 20 days and is expected to last eight to 10 weeks.
The jury has already heard disturbing accounts of the star’s alleged behavior over the years, including his abuse of ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, who took to the stand.
They also heard from former employees, including personal assistants, who claim they survived threats, were assaulted, and forced to supply drugs.
Los Angeles-based trial attorneyTre Lovell feels the accusations against Combs are strong enough that he will not be acquitted.
However, he feels the prosecution has faced some difficulties early on and jurors still need to see a lot more evidence for each of the charges.
He said, “I don’t think he’ll get an acquittal, which means you have to have a unanimous jury saying he didn’t do anything wrong, but there is a chance of a hung jury.
“And the way that’s gonna happen is one or more jurors are going to believe that these witnesses consented and wanted to be part of his world and that a lot of what they said is fabricated.
There’s no way he’s going to take the stand.”
Attorney Tre Lovell
“One of the overall themes of the testimony is.. all these employees and people who were raped, who were assaulted, who were threatened, stayed. They didn’t leave, continued to work for him, and then, even after they worked for him, even after they left, they stayed in touch with him.
“And so if the defense can be successful [in] cutting that down and say, ‘Hey, this just doesn’t make sense. It’s not consistent.’ Thus you have reasonable doubt.”
Lovell also feels the start of the trial felt more like a domestic violence case.
He said, “I think throughout the first week of testimony with Cassie Ventura that the prosecution was having some problems, and that was because, they weren’t able to differentiate that this was a sex-trafficking or racketeering case, as opposed to, domestic violence between two people in a relationship.
“However, as the cases started to progress we have seen assistant after assistant after assistant come forward with testimony, that of criminal act, criminal conduct.
“Whether or not it’s arson, whether or not it’s kidnapping, whether or not it’s extortion, threats, physical violence.
“The most difficult offense to prove is the racketeering because a lot goes into that and those tend to be a big hike.
“Sex trafficking would probably be the second most difficult to prove, and then the easiest could be the prostitution, the transportation to engage in prostitution, which means if he [was] hiring sex workers and bringing them across state lines, and the jury believes that is a form of prostitution.
Lovell went on, “I often say it’s like building a house. Opening arguments are the framing, and then as each witness comes in, each document comes in, you’re starting to build more and more of the house, and at the very end through closing arguments, that’s when the house is finished.
“Sometimes things aren’t going to seem as organized, maybe a little discombobulated, but it’s about tying it up at the end.
“So that we will see witness after witness after witness.
“Sometimes we’ll wonder why the order is as it is, but [by] the end the picture should be painted.”
Lovell says the prosecution’s case is getting stronger but believes it’s not a slam-dunk win and the defense still has a good chance.
Diddy locked eyes with us as he entered the courtroom - inside the trial of the decade
The federal sex trafficking trial of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs began with jury selection on May 5.
Combs is standing trial at the Southern District of New York Courthouse in Lower Manhattan – an intimidating federal courthouse where the cases of Ghislaine Maxwell, Donald Trump, and Bernard Madoff, among others, were tried.
Once a powerful founder of a music and business empire, Combs has been reduced to a defendant, inmate 37452-054, stripped of his mogul status, and now standing trial on five federal charges with the full wrath of the United States government against him.
When I attended Day 3 of jury selection at the federal courthouse on May 7, the buzz around the start of the trial was palpable.
Hours before the courthouse opened its doors, more than a dozen reporters and members of the public stood in line in hopes of securing a seat in the gallery for the high-profile trial.
As you walk through the glass door entrance of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse, you are met by bulletproof vest-clad court officers.
All visitors must separate their electronic devices from their personal belongings, which are passed through a metal detector.
Visitors walk through a metal detector before a court officer hands them a poker chip.
The courthouse uses a poker chip system to sort the number of electronic devices visitors are in possession of.
Electronic devices, such as Bluetooth-powered headphones, voice recorders, laptops, cellphones, and smart watches, are confiscated before you’re allowed to enter the courthouse’s main hallway.
As about a half-dozen reporters and I waited in the gallery for jury selection, we witnessed how Combs entered the courtroom shackle-free.
Combs entered with his hands pressed together, greeted his defense team before he examined the gallery, and locked eyes with reporters and potential jurors.
The 55-year-old disgraced Bad Boy Records executive was attentive and engaged with his counsel as they grilled dozens of potential jurors.
As jury selection wrapped up for the day, Combs embraced each of his female defense attorneys before he mouthed “thank you” to a handful of supporters in the gallery.
I attended trial again as opening statements got underway on May 12 and the world media waited anxiously outside the federal courthouse before the sun rose in Lower Manhattan.
A line stretched down the block from the federal courthouse as some members of the media and from the public camped out overnight to try to obtain a coveted seat inside the gallery.
At least three overflow rooms were made available for reporters and the public, who are eager to witness the prosecutions case against the music mogul.
At least half a dozen members of Combs’ family arrived at the courthouse as spectators filed in single order to enter the federal building to turn over all their electronic devices.
Combs’ trial is being held on the 26th floor in Judge Arun Subramanian’s courtroom and is expected to last for eight weeks.
He also feels there is no way Combs will take to the stand because his legal team will have a strong strategy and be focusing solely on reasonable doubt.
Lovell said, “There’s no way he’s going to take the stand. There’s no way his lawyers are going to let him.
“There is so much negative testimony out there, so many negative acts that they could use to cross-examine him.
“It would just be a waterfall of pain, and so I don’t think they would ever put him on the stand. They’re going to go through reasonable doubt.
“They’re going to poke holes in the prosecution’s case.
“They’re going to have some testimony from witnesses on his side that are going to corroborate that he’s a good person, that they never saw any of this. Everybody in his orbit was consenting, wanted to be there.”
Meanwhile, even if Combs is found guilty, he could be pardoned by President Donald Trump.
Trump surprised reporters by commenting on the court case during a news conference with Elon Musk and revealed he would consider whether or not he has been “mistreated.”
It comes after…
Cassie Ventura gave birth after she gave four days of grueling testimony about her relationship with Sean Combs during his federal sex trafficking trial
Ventura testified Combs forced her to participate in “freak-offs” where he watched her have sex with male escorts
Celebrities like Prince, Mike Myers, and Bill Gates have been mentioned throughout the trial
Kid Cudi testified about how his Porsche was blown up after Combs flew into a jealous rage when he dated Cassie
Asked if he would consider pardoning him, Trump said, “Nobody’s asked. But I know people are thinking about it. I think some people have been very close to asking.”
He said he felt the former music mogul used to like him “a lot” but wasn’t his biggest fan after he went into politics.
Despite this, Trump said, “I would certainly look at the facts. If I think somebody was mistreated, whether they like me or don’t like me, it wouldn’t have any impact on me.”
Lovell previously told The U.S. Sun a pardon would mean Combs would be out in days.
He said, “The pardoning power is one of the ultimate powers of the President. It’s virtually unchecked, and he can do it.
“He doesn’t even have to wait for the conviction. He can do it at any time after somebody’s charged, even after the crime occurs.
“So the second that President Trump determines that he’s gonna pardon him [Diddy]. It happens immediately.”
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call RAINN (Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network) at 800-656-HOPE (4673).
GettySean “Diddy” Combs with Donald Trump and Melania Trump before he became President of the US[/caption]
GettySean Combs’ sons Quincy Brown, Chance Combs, and Justin Combs are seen arriving at the Southern District of New York Federal Court[/caption]
GettySean Combs saw his career implode amid the allegations and was arrested in December 2020 after which he was denied bail[/caption]
1 day agoUSA UpdateComments Off on Thomas Haden Church Says He Was Originally Up For Don Johnson’s Role In ‘Knives Out’ Before ‘Wake Up, Dead Man’: “Between Me And Don Johnson To Do The First One”
