Daily Briefing: The day Matthew Perry died

Five people have been charged in connection with "Friends" star Matthew Perry's death. U.S. officials are preparing for a highly contagious and severe strain of mpox. A cozy crowd of 92,000 fans (this author included!!) attended Taylor Swift's European leg of the Eras Tour in London last night after a suspected terror plot canceled previous shows.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. Miss the Paris Olympics? We've got "Emily in Paris."

A famed actor, bad faith doctors and a 'Ketamine Queen'

Investigators laid out a constellation of events and actors leading up to Matthew Perry's death, charging five individuals on Thursday with actions that ultimately lead to the end of the "Friends" star's life.

U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration officials said the five defendants "played a key role in (Perry's) death by falsely prescribing, selling, or injecting" the drug ketamine.

• The day Perry died: The actor's live-in assistant Kenneth Iwamasa injected Perry with ketamine, as he did several times before, but without proper medical licensure to complete the injections.
• Where did the drugs come from? Physician Salvador Plasencia and Jasveen Sangha, whom the DOJ's press release referred to as the "The Ketamine Queen" of North Hollywood, face 18 criminal counts for allegedly "distributing ketamine to Perry during the final weeks of the actor’s life."
• "Perry’s journey began with unscrupulous doctors who abused their position of trust": Plasencia allegedly sold the drug despite knowing Perry's addiction to ketamine was "spiraling out of control."

Is the US prepared for mpox?

American officials are preparing after mpox was declared a global public health emergency on Thursday. The mpox virus circulating in Congo and a dozen other African countries, and now Sweden, is a different strain than the one that has circulated in the U.S. since a global outbreak began in 2022. This strain is considered more transmissible and the symptoms are more severe.

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What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

When does war stop?

Israel has achieved most of its battlefield aims against Hamas in Gaza, but is unlikely to eliminate the militant movement by continuing combat operations that have cost an estimated 40,000 lives, current and former U.S. officials say. While U.S. arms sales continue, some officials are questioning whether Israel’s military has hit a wall in Gaza. Read more

Black women are in charge at this year's DNC

It's only been a couple of weeks since Vice President Kamala Harris stepped up to become the Democratic party’s presumptive presidential nominee. For the first time, a woman of color will officially become the presidential nominee for a major political party next week. And Black women will play most of the key roles in leading the Democratic National Convention – the party's premiere showcase. Black women have been consistent in delivering the margins of wins for Democrats for years. Now they're at the front of the DNC.

Keep scrolling

• A Florida college emptied a gender diversity library.
• Notre Dame suspended its men's swimming team over gambling violations.
• Why are Millennials and Gen Z partying hard and blowing their savings?!?
• The NFL's new "dynamic" kickoff rules are already throwing teams for a loop.
• She knew something was wrong when he sat near her kids. He was removed from the flight.

Eating cereal as you read this? It may contain rocket fuel.

Ernesto upgraded to a Category 2 hurricane

Ernesto strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane late Thursday as it barreled toward Bermuda, threatening major damage over the weekend from powerful winds and heavy rain after leaving hundreds of thousands without power in Puerto Rico.  Moving at 14 mph, the storm is expected to begin dumping heavy rain over Bermuda on Friday before passing near or over the island on Saturday. Read more

Photo of the day: Taylor Swift returns to the Eras stage

Police donning "Swiftie" friendship bracelets set a tone of calm and order at London's Wembley Stadium Thursday night as Taylor Swift returned to the stage for the final stop on the European leg of the Eras Tour after a suspected terror plot was thwarted in Vienna. Security measures were tight as 92,000 fans danced and celebrated the pop star's eras of music. And the screams were deafening as Ed Sheeran made a surprise appearance.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at Paste BN, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com.