It was so special seeing my granddaughter for the first time in 10 weeks – The Sun

IT was special being able to see my granddaughter for the first time in months – and a shock to see how much she has grown!

I had a cuppa and cake with Ruby, 13, in my son’s garden yesterday, marking the first time I had seen her in about ten long weeks.

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We have FaceTimed and the rest of it during that time but nothing replaces hearing the words ‘grandad’ in real life.

It was a great joy seeing her laugh and jump around on the trampoline.

The two-metre social distancing rule is still difficult.

We can’t say good-bye properly – it’s almost as if we’re strangers.

But I couldn’t believe how much she’d grown in the time we had apart. She’s become a young woman.

I just need to hug her now – along with the rest of my sons and grandchildren.

Being able to see her marked an iconic moment in the lockdown timeline.

It feels like we’re getting near the finishing line.



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Daily horoscope for Tuesday June 2 — here’s what the stars have in store for you today – The Sun

♈ ARIES

March 21 to April 20

As Pluto and Jupiter push back, you feel able to rock the boat in life and love but do it with consideration, and give everyone a chance to reply.

The moon encourages a big image change – someone you read or see on a screen every day is the key.

A cash U-turn could work.

♉ TAURUS

April 21 to May 21

You’re owning a career change and really making it work for you with a special mix of ambition and adventure.

And this time, nothing can deter you.

The person in a group who always seems to seek you out has a passion proposal you’ll adore.

If you’re already attached, an “A” date can be back in your diary.

♊ GEMINI

May 22 to June 21

Make the most of your loving personal glow and organise that conversation you’re been putting off.

This time, your message can get through and make a difference.

Your creative flair comes to the surface, ready for upcoming career chances.

Passion is off the scale, thanks to a new neighbourhood face.

♋ CANCER

June 22 to July 22

Last-minute schedule or location changes are your love clues, so jump right in, go with the flow and show special people just what you have to offer.

A family moon softens hard edges and helps generations connect again.

An object linked to past holidays has a value you don’t realise yet, so do your research.

♌ LEO

July 23 to August 23

Your public face and your private heart don’t match up today and you’re ready to do something about it, even if it means telling some difficult truths.

If you’re single, someone with a lot of followers really longs to spend time with you.

Keep talking at work, and don’t let a colleague or boss hide in silence.

♍ VIRGO

August 24 to September 22

A time of getting “stuck” on the wrong people or projects is ending and you feel so free.

Use this time and energy to give yourself some TLC, and really appreciate your own skills and time.

An outdoor event brings back a face that thrilled you first time round.

This time, you know exactly what to do and say.

♎ LIBRA

September 23 to October 23

Family storms can start as Pluto and Jupiter square up but instead of trying to keep the peace, let discussions run their course and a new level of agreement can start.

Your passion profile is larger than life, and someone surprising is asking about you.

If you’re in love, turn thoughts into loving words.

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♏ SCORPIO

October 24 to November 22

Your communication style is straight to the point, and not everyone will like this but it will get results so don’t let yourself be pushed back towards “nice”.

A personal moon lights up love in the afternoon – surprise dates are so sexy.

Mars adds a flash of creative genius, your ideas are so strong and good to go.

Luck drives a red vehicle.

♐ SAGITTARIUS

November 23 to December 21

Set aside time to work through money issues, and ease any stress in your mind.

Sharing a responsibility is the key to making it work better. There can be a time bonus, too.

Friends who have seemed mysterious lately have a surprise in store and a music-based question is asked in the key of love.

♑ CAPRICORN

December 22 to January 20

Your success sector throws out lots of challenges, and you can answer them all, but for great results try to be more fussy.

The right route for now is so obvious when you see it.

Passion is pure physical bliss, and you’ll feel it the moment you hear a sexy whisper.

Your sign is a rebel, ready to find a new cause.

♒ AQUARIUS

January 21 to February 18

There’s a journey in your chart, and you may not even realise you’re on it until you arrive and feel your heart has come home.

If you’re single, this is with someone with a role in the fashion world.

Mars encourages clear-outs and decluttering – be sure you’re doing it for the right reasons, at the right time.

♓ PISCES

February 19 to March 20

Your chart is strong in making clear, fast choices for yourself but if other people ask you to do this for them, be cautious.

Dig deeper into what’s really going on.

Love stakes are high – partners old or new are ready to show you just how much they care.

Luck links to a ticket in an old book.

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Cardi B Reacts to Critic Who Said Her Daughter, Kulture, Doesn't Like Her

Cardi B quickly became a superstar with her over-the-top personality and catchy music, but one thing she doesn’t play about is her daughter, Kulture Cephus. Cardi B and her husband Offset welcomed their daughter into the world back in July 2018. Since then, the “Bodak Yellow” rapper has been open about how much she enjoys being a mother. Furthermore, she’s quick to slam anyone who says negative things about her parenting skills.

According to Cardi B’s sister, Hennessy Carolina, being a mother was something that the rapper always wanted to do. Thus, the “Finesse” singer doesn’t take kindly to anyone badmouthing how she chooses to be a mom. In fact, Cardi B made the decision to shield her daughter from the public eye for the first several months of her life in order to protect her. As Cardi B is incredibly famous, she is subjected to intense criticism and scrutiny on a daily basis. Naturally, the 27-year-old didn’t want that negativity to reach Kulture.

Cardi B shows off her daughter, Kulture, on Instagram live

Now, however, as Kulture approaches her 2nd birthday, Cardi B is a bit more open in terms of sharing her daughter with her fans. The Bronx native’s Instagram feed occasionally boasts pictures and videos of a happy and healthy Kulture. Recently, the rapper even gave fans a special treat and she went live and managed to show off Kulture’s hilarious personality. In the live, Cardi B repeatedly screams her daughter’s name to get her attention. But, instead of paying her mother any mind, Kuture ignores her and continues playing with her tablet and sucking on her pacifier.

RELATED: Cardi B Wants to Run for Office; ‘I Deadass Have Sooo Much Ideas That Make Sense’

Of course, the Internet went crazy over the video and Kulture even began trending on Twitter. “Kulture is so over Cardi and her antics,” one person tweeted using the crying laughing emojis. It wasn’t long before that particular tweet caught Cardi B’s eye and she took to her own Twitter to respond. “And guess who made me get out the shower, thirty minutes later after this live with soap on me just to tuck her in and cuddle her to sleep? Yes Miss Kulture,” the 27-year-old shared about her daughter.

Fans react to the video on Twitter

But, not all of the tweets were playful and positive. In fact, some people used the hilarious video as “proof” that Cardi B’s daughter didn’t care for her mother. “Kulture don’t like her momma and that’s the funniest part every video she be ignoring tf outta all that screaming,” one person declared. Again, the tweet caught the rapper’s eye and she chose to react to the statement.

Taking to her Twitter feed once more, the rapper retweeted the statement that her daughter didn’t like her. “Loud and wrong,” Cardi B clapped back in her caption. She also posted an additional video of Kulture giving her a kiss on the lips. Fans, of course, felt that the new video was sweet and they began demanding even more footage of the toddler. Others encouraged Cardi B to ignore the naysayers. We doubt that the latter will happen anytime soon, but we can understand why the rapper might feel compelled to defend herself when it comes to her daughter.

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‘Insecure’ Star Kendrick Sampson Injured During LA Protests – His History Of Social Activism

Millions are outraged over the death of George Floyd, an African American man who was killed by a white police officer. Protests are taking place across the country calling for change and the arrests and convictions of all involved and celebrities are taking to the frontline and using their platform to help. One of the celebrities to participate in a recent protest is Insecure star, Kendrick Sampson. 

Sampson is not new to social activism but this time, things took a scary turn. The actor updated fans on his social media pages to reveal that he was injured by police while protesting in LA over the weekend.

Kendrick Sampson says police beat and shot him with rubber bullets while protesting in LA

Sampson joined thousands as they took the streets of LA to demand change over America’s centuries-long history of racial injustice. He walked with others as they marched through areas of LA while holding “Black Lives Matter” signs while trying to avoid potential arrests or pushback from law enforcement. Unfortunately, Sampson was harmed during the protests.  

“They shot me four times already,” he said in an Instagram Live video. “I already got hurt and I got hit with a baton.”

When Sampson got home, he realized the damage was much greater than he originally thought.

“Glad y’all witnessed this. [Especially] the video of them actually targeting us. He didn’t try to ricochet the bullets of the ground-one tactic-he pointed the gun DIRECTLY AT ME. I actually got hit 7 times with rubber bullets and many batons. My boy has stitches,” he wrote on Twitter. 

Related: 10 Celebrities Who Were Arrested While Protesting

Videos circulated on social media of Sampson being hit. In one video, Sampson is seen in front of a crowd of protesters having a screaming match with police officers and is repeatedly hit with a baton. CNN posted a video of Sampson’s interaction with police officers on their Instagram page. Sampson also shared photos of his injuries to his Instagram account.

Sampson spoke to Variety after the incident and explained that he was attacked despite the protest being peaceful.

“We did an event together — peaceful, powerful, talking about defunding the police, talking about building power in our communities and what that really looks like,” he said. “That’s what we were doing. We marched to the intersection at Fairfax, we were there for a bit. We closed it out with a chant.”

Kendrick Sampson has a history of social activism

Sampson has been using his platform to help with racial injustice for years. The son of biracial parents, the Houston-pred actor was an activist long before his move to Hollywood. His interest in civil rights began early and was sparked by the actions of his parents, who pushed their son to be socially conscious. 

View this post on Instagram

See y’all in DTLA at 4. Pull up. The team @bldpwr produced this in 2019. #BlackLivesMatter #BLDPWR #LetUsLive In reference to my last post – @bldpwr to educate around a super progressive police accountability bill. While we won and passed the bill, it was essentially gutted. It helps but not nearly to the extent it could have. • Why was it gutted, pressure from police unions. police unions should not be a part of organized labor. The reason your elected officials take no substantive action – Police unions lobbying power and intimidation power is immense and they use it to operate like organized crime. • The policing system is founded on slave catching and continues to act as such. It was founded to harm, not heal our communities. To protect to most able and abusive by targeting the people they were killing and abusing. We can come up with a better system. One founded in accountability, rehabilitation, restorative justice and care for the most vulnerable. They act as organized crime and continue the legacy of colonization and white supremacy in this country. It’s time to put an end to that legacy. Defund police, release those much needed funds and fund services we desperately need to relieve and heal (mental health care, housing, rehabilitation). # Most of these city budgets are most influenced by the Mayor and City council – Demand Mayor Frey of Minneapolis (612-968-4443 / 612-673-2100) and Mayor Garcetti of LA and city councils defund police. And prosecutors prosecute killer cops. And don’t take “no” for an answer, I don’t care what laws are preventing justice. If the laws are unjust, change them. Now. Or ignore tf out of them like they do when we want justice. We don’t have time to wait. Y’all had y’all’s time. Centuries. Now it’s ours. Justice. Liberation. Abolish the system and build better. We can. ✊🏽 #BLDPWR #GeorgeFloyd

A post shared by Kendrick Sampson (@kendrick38) on

He founded his organization BLD PWR along with two other activists in 2019. The program trains artists, athletes, and entertainers to use their voices “to create a groundswell of positive social change across all sectors of society.” He works with a variety of partners, including leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement, and professors from UCLA and Cal State LA to moderate the trainings.  

Other issues that Sampson lends his name and voice to include immigrant rights, prison reform, and police brutality. He told Teen Vogue in 2019 that his focus lies on four issues.

“I’m just going to kind of break it down into four things: education, housing, health care, and jobs. Those all intersect,” he said. “When you’re looking at public safety — a term that should be redefined — you make huge investments in those four areas.”

Sampson is now committed to defunding police as a result of police brutality. He’s explained his reasoning in an exclusive Variety report.

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Kim Kardashian offers financial aid to protester hit by rubber bullet

Kim Kardashian has offered financial assistance to a young woman shot with a rubber bullet by police while protesting.

The SKIMS founder posted a public appeal to Twitter after seeing a picture of a protester’s grisly facial injuries.

“This is heartbreaking and so disturbing,” Kardashian, 39, wrote. “Does anyone know how I can get in contact with her? I would love to help her with her medical care if she needs it.”

The woman in the photograph goes by Shannyn Sharyse Nara on Facebook and Twitter. She posted multiple videos of protests to Facebook beginning on Friday evening prior to her injury and subsequent hospitalization.

“As many of you saw last night I protested and at the end of one my videos you can see the aftermath of me taking a rubber bullet or something straight to the head,” Nara posted to Facebook Saturday morning. “My forehead has a chunk out of it and the doctors couldn’t even stitch it because of the debris. My right eye is swollen and took an hour before I could open it. Both of my eyes are messed up from debris that got trapped in them and I have to use numbing drops just to be able to open them.”

Nara also posted the pictures to Twitter, where they quickly spread. Patricia Arquette was one of thousands who responded to her tweets.

Protests have erupted in many major US cities after George Floyd died in police custody last week, with many turning violent as police escalated their responses. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo declared an 11 p.m. curfew in New York City Monday as a response.

Kardashian did not immediately return a request for comment.

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Duggar Family Critics Think Josh Duggar's Wife, Anna, Lived in 'Horrible' Conditions During Her First Pregnancy

Those who follow the Duggars are very aware of Josh Duggar. The disgraced oldest son of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar is no longer associated with Counting On after he admitted to molesting some of his younger sisters in the early 2000s. And many judge his wife, Anna, for sticking by his side. Despite the rocky points in their marriage, Anna and Josh have remained together — and they even have six children.

Josh and Anna’s oldest child, Mackynzie, was born back in 2009. And their sixth child was born in late 2019. We can’t forget that Josh and Anna decided to have Mackynzie’s gender revealed on the Today show, too — and some Duggar family critics now suspect Anna was living in horrible conditions while she was traveling at the time.

Josh and Anna Duggar have 6 children together

The Duggars adore children, so it’s no surprise that Josh and Anna Duggar also have six kids. Anna just gave birth to Maryella back in November 2019 right around the start of the holiday season. And she appears to be a pro at motherhood, as just five days after giving birth, she was already attending Duggar family festivities.

We’re not sure if Josh and Anna are finished having children just yet, either. So, are they planning on having as many kids as Jim Bob and Michelle? According to Anna, that’s not likely to happen.

“So far our kids pretty much have a 2+ year gap between each one, at this rate number 20 would arrive when I’m 60,” Anna told an Instagram follower who asked. “So no I don’t think I will have 20. I’m thankful for the six children God has given us, and I’m just treasuring each day and leaving the future in HIS hands!”

They had the gender reveal of their first child on live television

Josh and Anna aren’t on TV anymore, but when Anna was pregnant with Mackynzie, they decided to have their gender reveal on TV. According to Today, the couple went on the air to cut a cake that revealed the baby’s gender — and they discovered they’d be having a little girl. Josh and Anna also discussed the possibility of having all of their kids’ names start with M, and so far, they’ve kept up with this.

“I think you can prepare only in so many ways, but really just realizing that you’re going to be a role model for that child, and be able to be prepared as you can be to be able to take on that,” Josh told the Today host at the time. “It’s an interesting experience, but I have great parents to look to.”

As for a big family, Josh also mentioned at the time that he’d be totally content with just “two or three” children — though we know now that the couple ended up having double that.

Duggar followers think Anna was living in bad conditions during her pregnancy

RELATED: ‘Counting On’: A Complete Timeline of Josh and Anna Duggar’s Marriage

Traveling while pregnant isn’t easy, but some Duggar family critics suspect the conditions Anna had to deal with during the Today show trip were outrageous.

“October 8, 2009 – M1 born. During this time (2nd/3rd Trimester) they lived on the Duggar bus,” a Reddit user deduced. “-Dollywood & Dolly Parade -Bates House build where they had 50+ people using ONE bathroom -visit to Michelle’s family in Ohio (not shown on KAC) -DC including trip to Ethiopian restaurant. This infuriates me. Her first pregnancy she lived in horrible, crowded conditions, never able to have a moment for herself. Ugh. Poor Anna.”

Others also seemed appalled at what Anna went through here. “I’ve never been pregnant but I think the last think I’d want to do is constantly be traveling,” another noted.

“I could even imagine the smells and movements,” another wrote. “Thats not even probably half of it cause I tend to look at pregnancy with rose colored glasses. That sounds soo misrable.”

We may never know how Anna truly feels about her life with Josh a decade ago or now. But we’re interested to see how her life with her family progresses (and if she decides to have more children).

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Tyler Perry Says He Spoke to 'George Floyd's Immediate Family': They Want 'Peaceful Protest'


Tyler Perry is urging protestors to demonstrate peacefully.

The mogul, 50, posted a message on Instagram on Monday amid ongoing protests after George Floyd’s death.

“I spent the past few days with an extremely heavy heart, having very high level conversations with people who don’t look like me, people who may not believe what I believe, people who don’t know what it’s like to be black in America but were willing to listen,” Perry wrote. “White people who are Republicans and Democrats, with different opinions, different views, and different ideas and strategies on how to stop this! White people with the power to have this go either way.”

Perry also said he had spoken to Floyd’s family in regards to protests that have been taking place across the country.

“I also spoke to George Floyd’s immediate family and tried to speak comfort in this moment,” Perry wrote. “I have to tell you — they are adamant in their call for peaceful protest.”

The Madea’s Family Reunion creator said he, along with several other well-known A-listers, had been reaching out to “effect change,” adding it takes “ALL OF US BLACK PEOPLE TO DO OUR PART!!”

“Think about this please. We’re only 12 to 14 percent of the US population,” he said. “With a number like that, we need allies that don’t look like us. Allies who are not in the 12 to 14 percent but want to be in the number that help us.”

“And you gotta know that I wasn’t the only one doing this. There are a lot of high profile black people, Oprah, Jay-Z, Diddy, athletes, politicians, business leaders, preachers, community leaders, and on and on who are doing the same thing I was doing to help us all,” he continued. “There were a lot of white people that are famous that I was talking to who wanted to know how they can help. One actually said 'teach us what we need to know.'"

Perry added, “Please remember this my loving black brothers and sisters, if we judge all white people and all police officers as the same, then that is the blanket judgment that we are accusing them of!!”

Benjamin Crump, the Floyd family's lawyer, told PEOPLE in a statement that George's family thinks "looting and violence are absolutely unacceptable

"On behalf of the family that we understand the righteous anger we see playing out on streets across the country," Crump said. "We support the activism and energy of the people who want to make sure we achieve change, and we hope those efforts continue."

He continued, "But looting and violence are absolutely unacceptable. They were unacceptable to George, and they must be unacceptable to us. The way to honor George is to achieve justice. As a country, we need to take a deep breath. George Floyd wasn't allowed that, but we must. We have a team of top legal minds who are not going to stop until there's justice for George Floyd and his family."

During a press conference on Monday, Crump revealed the results of an independent autopsy conducted on Floyd's body.

The independent autopsy found Floyd's cause of death was "asphyxia due to neck and back compression," with the manner of death called a homicide, the independent autopsy concluded.

Crump said during the press conference that "George Floyd’s family wants first-degree murder" for all the officers involved in his death.

The findings of the independent autopsy contradict the initial results from the Hennepin County medical examiner, which claimed it found no evidence of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation, according to the Washington Post.

The protests — some of which have turned violent — began last week in Minneapolis when footage of Floyd and his death after a police officer kneeled on his neck during an arrest surfaced online. Derek Chauvin, the officer involved in the incident, has been fired from his post and was charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter on Friday.

Since George's death, outrage has carried on in the form of protests throughout U.S. cities like Minneapolis, New York, Atlanta, Washington D.C. and Los Angeles, where acts of violence occurred over the weekend by both the demonstrators and the police.

In New York, an NYPD vehicle drove through a mass gathering of protestors after they threw debris at the vehicle, while in cities like Minneapolis and Los Angeles, tear gas was reportedly used on demonstrators.

Some protestors also looted from stores throughout the weekend and even burnt down buildings and police cars. Hundreds of arrests have been made in nearly all the major U.S. cities were protests and riots took place and curfews have since been implemented as a means to stop the encounters between demonstrators and police.

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Music Industry Calls For ‘Black Out Tuesday’

In a message of solidarity in response to the death of George Floyd, a number of music industry leaders have called for a “Black Out Tuesday” on June 2.

Record labels such as Atlantic Records, Capitol Music Group, Columbia Records, Def Jam, Universal Music Group, Sony Music, Warner Records, and Interscope Geffen A&M, among many others, have all pledged to cease business activity on Tuesday.

“Due to recent events please join us as we take an urgent step of action to provoke accountability and change,” says a statement widely circulated on social media under the hashtag #TheShowMustBePaused.

“As gatekeepers of the culture, it’s our responsibility to not only come together to celebrate the wins, but also hold each other up during a loss,” the statement continues. “Join us on Tuesday JUNE 2 as a day to disconnect from work and reconnect with our community.”

A number of the labels noted that “Black Out Tuesday” will not be a “day off” but rather a day to reflect and figure out ways to move forward in solidarity.

The move by the music industry comes following the May 25 death of Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers. Floyd’s death has sparked mass protests across the country.

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Dating show star's ex assistant details his 'sad, desperate' love life

The ‘sad, desperate’ life of ‘America’s most eligible man’: Dating show star’s ex-assistant recalls putting ‘hundreds’ of women’s numbers into his little black book – along with misogynistic details about their fake breasts and sexual prowess

  • Southern California-based writer Joanna Greenberg wrote an essay about working as an executive assistant in New York City when she was 19
  • She said she was hired by one of the first stars of an ‘uber-popular’ dating show
  • Joanna does not identify the man by name, only referring to him as ‘Ben’ 
  • She also doesn’t reveal what reality series he took part in  
  • Joanna recalled that her main task was filing napkins and scraps of paper with women’s names and phone numbers, and her boss’ thoughts on each of them
  • She described him as ‘deeply insecure,’ ‘sad, desperate,’ and  ‘a man-child with no real intimacy in his life’

A Southern California-based writer has opened up about her time working as an executive assistant for a reality star once called ‘America’s Most Eligible Man,’ recalling how her main task was to organize the names, phone numbers, and sexual descriptions of the women he’d meet.

Writing for Narratively, Joanna Greenberg reflected on her time as a 19-year-old NYU sophomore who needed cash and took a gig assisting a semi-famous reality TV, personality whom she found to be ‘deeply insecure’ and ‘sad.’

Joanna did not identify her former boss by name — nor did she reveal what reality show he starred in — and simply referred to him as ‘Ben’ throughout her piece.  

Story time: Southern California-based writer Joanna Greenberg wrote an essay about working as an executive assistant in NYC when she was 19

Joanna wrote that she worked for the man for two months while attending New York University 15 years ago.

She described the man as 15 years her senior — so, about 34 at the time — and said that he worked as an analyst at a prestigious financial firm. 

‘He was tall, dark, and generically handsome, and he wore the same weekend uniform as all of the other similarly situated white dudes in the East Village: dark washed denim, designer T-shirts, and brown leather loafers,’ she said.

Most tellingly, he had starred on one of the first seasons of an ‘uber-popular reality dating show’ two years before they’d met. 

‘He had managed to springboard his way into the glamorous world of D-list New York celebrity,’ she said, remembering how a waiter complimented him on the show while they had lunch during the job interview.

After the show aired, he had become a spokesperson for a popular dating website and ‘dreamed of a career in television’.

Joanna recalled that when she started working for him for $15 an hour, he lived in ‘a trendy building in Alphabet City, in a large loft-style apartment with four roommates.’

Her job required her to come to his apartment and organize contact information for his romantic prospects and conquests.  

This involved sorting through a shoebox of ‘hundreds’ of napkins, scraps of paper, and business cards with women’s names, ages, and numbers on them. 

What’s more, her boss added an evaluation to each, describing one as having ‘fake tits that felt real’, another as having a husband who traveled a lot, and yet another has giving good oral sex.

Joanna had to file all of this information into his Microsoft Outlook contacts in a ‘Black Book’ folder, a task that she says he thought she would find interesting because she, like him, is also attracted to women. 

‘He thought that we could relate to each other based on our shared sexual attraction to women, but I did not at all relate to [his] romantic pursuits,’ she said. She found the notes misogynistic.

‘In the mornings when I arrived, Ben would casually hand me a new stack of women’s numbers and evaluations. He did this without any overt display of emotion, but in hindsight, I can remember a certain twinkle in his eyes. He seemed to want me to react, and while I tried my best not to, I have never had a poker face,’ she said.

During this time, she also read his emails, which she said made him more relatable. She learned that he genuinely thought he’d find love on TV, and would send ‘long, sad emails’ to a life coach about his ‘failure to become more famous or find a wife.’ 

‘He was deeply insecure and vulnerable, and he was trying to f*** his way to self-esteem,’ she wrote.

One day while they ate lunch together, he was complaining about his love life when she spoke up.  

‘If you really want to get married, the way you’re going about it is silly,’ she told him. ‘Women don’t want to be objectified. You should ditch the black book and just try to be honest with someone.’ 

She remembered him being receptive to her advice, saying he’d discuss it with his life coach. She was amazed that it appeared to be the first time someone told him to respect women.  

Considering the shoebox of names, she added: ‘It wasn’t hostile, it was sad, desperate. A man-child with no real intimacy in his life but crumpled napkins and the memories of sexual conquests.’  

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I'll Be Gone in the Dark: Why the Suspected Golden State Killer Is Still Awaiting Trial

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, HBO’s new docuseries based on the book of the same name, takes an in-depth look at the search for the Golden State Killer, a rapist and murderer prominent throughout California in the 1970s and 1980s. Though the case is still not fully resolved, the authorities have a suspect in custody who is awaiting trial and possible sentencing if convicted: Joseph James DeAngelo Jr.

Michelle McNamara, the late writer who penned the original book, spent years of her life tying together serial killers and major crimes in California — the East Area Rapist, the Original Night Stalker, and the Visalia Ransacker. McNamara was able to link them and dubbed the single culprit the Golden State Killer. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Golden State Killer committed rapes, assaults, burglaries, and murders up and down California before going dormant. According to The New York Times, “His victims included women who were home alone and some who were home with their husbands. Sometimes, both husband and wife were killed. He is also thought to have burglarized more than 120 homes.”

McNamara worked on the case and followed the trail until she died in 2016. In 2018, after DNA matching had become more advanced, authorities were able to tie DNA from some of the crimes decades earlier to DNA already in the system for DeAngelo Jr. The former police officer from northern California was charged with 13 counts of murder and several kidnapping and weapons charges. His charges cross several counties in California, and many of them are seeking the death penalty. Prosecutors have even called the Golden State Killer case the “most notorious unsolved serial-rape killing in California history.”

DeAngelo Jr. is still awaiting trial and sentencing if convicted, but The New York Times reported that as of early March, he was planning to plead guilty in exchange for being sentenced to life in prison rather than the death penalty. His public defenders noted that as he’s currently 74 years old, he wanted to take the lifetime sentence and “offered to plead guilty because criminal cases often take years to resolve and the trial process is often very stressful for victims and their families,” The New York Times writes.

As of now, DeAngelo Jr.’s trial has been pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so it’s unclear what his plea and possible sentence may be. You can watch the whole backstory of the Golden State Killer and McNamara’s quest to find him in HBO’s I’ll Be Gone in the Dark starting June 28.

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