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Friday's Daily Briefing: Ahmaud Arbery shooting, college bribe scandal

Editors  |  Paste BN

It's finally Friday, Daily Briefing readers! Do you have any exciting plans for this Memorial Day weekend?

If you're getting bored with your Netflix streaming routine, amp it up by turning your typical viewing into a drinking/party game. There are plenty of new movies coming to a small screen near you plus for fans of Netflix hits "Love is Blind" and "Too Hot to Handle" there's a new dating reality show with a twist in which a woman who is ready to start a family decides among aspiring fathers-to-be. And here are 7 delicious, easy cocktails you can make at home while you watch.

It's N'dea and here is today's top news.

Ahmaud Arbery shooting: More details emerge after latest arrest

A news conference is scheduled Friday at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Headquarters, a day after the bureau announced the arrest of the man who filmed the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery. William "Roddie" Bryan, 50, has been charged with felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment, according to the GBI. Bryan's arrest is the latest in connection to the shooting of Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, in February. Gregory McMichael, 64, a former police officer, and his son Travis McMichael, 34, both white, were arrested after a storm of public outcry after Bryan's video of Arbery's death was made public. Arbery was killed in a neighborhood about two miles from his Georgia home while he was out jogging. Attorneys for Arbery's parents said in a statement they called for Bryan's arrest "from the very beginning of this process."

Here are the latest headlines on COVID-19

As the U.S. approaches 100,000 coronavirus deaths, Alaska is set to reopen fully on Friday, with Gov. Mike Dunleavy pushing for a return to life "prior to the virus."

Meanwhile, on Thursday, President Donald Trump told reporters he would not shut down the country if there's a second wave of infections: “We are going to put out the fires. We’re not going to close the country,” Trump said.

Sign up to get daily updates on the coronavirus and a newsletter about how to cope with these trying times straight to your inbox. 📥

Lori Loughlin, Mossimo Giannulli to plead guilty in college bribes case

Actress Lori Loughlin and her fashion designer husband, Mossimo Giannulli, will plead guilty Friday to their part in the "Varsity Blues" college admissions fraud case. The former star of "Full House" is on track to get two months in prison and her husband, five. They will each admit to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud as part of separate plea agreements with federal prosecutors. Headlining the blockbuster scandal, they were accused last year of paying $500,000 in bribes to the mastermind of a nationwide admissions scheme to get their two daughters into the University of Southern California. They will become the 33rd and 34th defendants to plead guilty out of 53 charged, including actress Felicity Huffman and a who's who of other parent defendants. 

It's summer vacation season! Or is it?

As the annual summer travel season kicks off Friday with the start of the Memorial Day weekend, travelers and the businesses that cater to them face unprecedented uncertainty, chaos and concern in the coronavirus era. Major attractions and vacation destinations remain closed, stay-at-home orders and travel restrictions are still pervasive, and some would-be travelers are anxious about the virus and crowds or put off by new safety measures, including mandatory face masks on planes. Add in steep job losses, and the question becomes: Is summer vacation canceled this year?

Need a break from coronavirus news?

Here's what else people are talking about:

Shocking 'AKA Jane Roe' documentary airs on FX

The woman behind the pseudonym Jane Roe in the landmark Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade challenges the narrative that she changed her mind about abortion due to religious realization in a new FX documentary airing Friday. In the film, Norma McCorvey offers what she calls a "deathbed confession," shortly before her 2017 death at 69, in which she claims that the pro-life movement paid her to join their side and speak out against abortion. "AKA Jane Roe" details McCorvey's life story and fraught relationship with the abortion debate. It airs on FX at 9 p.m. ET/PT and will be available to stream on Hulu on Saturday. 

More Macy's stores reopen for Memorial Day weekend

Macy's, which shuttered stores nationwide in March amid the coronavirus pandemic, plans to reopen 80 stores for Memorial Day weekend shopping on Friday. Stores reopening are in Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Minnesota, Missouri, Pennsylvania and Virginia. With the reopenings, about 80% of Macy's stores will either be open or offering curbside pickup, Macy's chairman and CEO Jeff Gennette said. Macy's previously announced changes to its shopping experience, including "no-touch" consultations in beauty departments and the suspension of alteration services. The company forecasts a loss of up to $1.1 billion for the quarter.

In better news: Are you feeling lucky?🖼️

An Italian accountant whose son bought her a raffle ticket as a Christmas present won a Pablo Picasso oil painting valued at $1.1 million in a charity draw.

Claudia Borgogno summed up her amazement in one word: “Incredible.”

“I have never won anything before,” the 58-year-old told The Associated Press from her home in Ventimiglia, northern Italy. She said she likes Picasso, and the prospect of being able to hang one of the 20th century master’s paintings on her wall was still sinking in.

Her son, Lorenzo Naso, bought two tickets in December, sending one to his mother.

“It was maybe the best decision in my life,” he told AP.

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