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Karmelo AnthonyFighting for New Trial, New Judge
Karmelo Anthony's new attorneys are making a bold first move ... asking for a new trial and trying to sideline the judge who presided over his murder case.
The defense filed two major motions Tuesday -- one seeking to remove Judge John Roach from all remaining post-trial proceedings, and another asking the court to throw out Anthony's conviction altogether. Anthony's lawyers argue the new-trial issues should be decided by a different judge and want Judge Roach to recuse himself.
In the recusal motion, Anthony's attorneys point to Roach's post-verdict interview with a local TV station and his written statement to Fox News ... arguing he publicly endorsed the guilty verdict, defended his courtroom rulings, and declared Anthony received a fair trial -- comments they say make it impossible for him to fairly rule on the defense's post-trial motions.
The separate motion for a new trial claims Anthony's constitutional rights were violated ... arguing courtroom access restrictions deprived him of a public trial and prosecutors backed away from an off-the-record agreement that ultimately led Anthony not to testify in his own defense.
As TMZ previously reported, Anthony overhauled his legal team after his murder conviction, bringing in a new group of attorneys to handle his appeal and post-trial fight. He was sentenced to 35 years in prison for murdering Austin Metcalf at a Frisco, TX high school track meet.
Now, those attorneys are taking direct aim at both the conviction -- and the judge who oversaw the trial.
Here’s a Look at Some of the New Laws Taking Effect in Tennessee July 1
Walmart is lowering prices on thousands of items, including beef, soda and household goods
Walmart is lowering prices on thousands of products, including beef, Coca-Cola and laundry detergent, saying the cuts are aimed at reducing the costs of seasonal summer items.
The largest U.S. retailer on Monday said the price cuts will be available in its stores and in Sam's Club locations, on Walmart.com, SamsClub.com, and through the Walmart and Sam's Club apps. The reductions apply to groceries and other household items, such as grills, sunscreen and lawn mowers.
President Trump praised Walmart for the reductions and sought to claim credit for the decision.
"I have just been informed that one of the biggest, best, and smartest Retailers in America, Walmart, will be lowering prices, by a lot, at my Administration's request to celebrate our great Country's 250th birthday," Mr. Trump wrote on Monday in a social media post.
Walmart declined to comment on Mr. Trump's post. Its announcement about the price reductions did not mention the president.
The price reductions went into effect last week, according to a Walmart spokesperson. The announcement represents a continuation of Walmart's existing strategy of emphasizing low prices and affordability, noted Vital Knowledge analyst Adam Crisafulli in a report.
Still, the price cuts are a win for both Walmart and Mr. Trump, who is facing criticism from Democrats for failing to reduce the cost of living, despite his campaign pledges to drive down inflation. The Consumer Price Index in May reached its highest level in more than three years, driven higher by soaring energy prices caused by the Iran war.
"It's a win/win for both sides — Trump needs to improve his messaging around affordability ahead of the midterms, and Walmart loves to occupy the low-price spotlight," Crisafulli wrote.
Walmart raised prices in February
The price reductions come after Walmart said in February that it had raised prices on "general merchandise" — products like electronics and appliances — due to higher U.S. tariffs on imports. Many of those goods are imported from overseas manufacturers, which were subject to Mr. Trump's so-called "Liberation Day" tariffs until the Supreme Court struck them down in February.
About half of Americans say they're struggling to pay for everyday items like groceries and gas, according to a new survey from The Guardian and Harris Poll published on Tuesday. It found that 95% of Americans believe the U.S. is in the grips of an affordability crisis.
While Mr. Trump has at times dismissed Americans' affordability concerns, the president on Monday wrote in his social media post that he is delivering on his promises to lower costs.
"Just as I promised, Oil Prices are plummeting FAST, and Gas Prices at the pump are dropping too, just like egg and Prescription Drug prices which I am bringing down by historic levels," he wrote.
Where Walmart is cutting prices
Walmart said it has cut prices on thousands of items, including the following:
- 1 lb. 73% ground beef roll, fresh: $5.94, down from $6.74 —a 12% cut
- Fresh sweet corn on the cob: $0.25 each, down from $0.68 —a 63% cut
- Fresh red cherries 2.25 lb. bag: $5.63, down from $11.18 — a 50% reduction
- Great Value ice cream 48 fl. oz: $2.50, down from $2.97 — a 16% cut
- Lay's Classic Potato Chips 8 oz bag: $2.50, down from $2.97 — a 16% cut
- Frito-Lay Family Fun Variety Pack, 18-count: $8.97, down from $9.97 — a 10% drop
- Great Value disposable paper plates, 200-count: $8.97, down from $9.97 — a 10% cut
- Coca-Cola, Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar 24-packs: $9.97, down from $14.97 — a 33% cut
- Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Dr. Pepper and Diet Mountain Dew 24-packs: $9.97, down from $13.97 — a 29% reduction
What we know about Nolan Wells, the student-athlete found dead off the coast of Mississippi
The family of 18-year-old Nolan Wells has retained civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump.
The Mississippi teenager was found dead Monday morning on Horn Island, a barrier island off the state's coast, after a Fourth of July weekend trip with friends.
The Jackson County Sheriff's Office said the investigation remains "active and ongoing" and is asking for photos and videos from the northwest part of Horn Island on July 4, where Wells' body was found.
"Particularly those depicting alleged altercations or containing images of, or believed to include Nolan Wells," Sheriff John Ledbetter wrote in a statement, additionally asking for eyewitness accounts and statements of any other arguments or disturbances from that day.
The Jackson County coroner positively identified the body as Wells on Tuesday.
Screenshot of the missing persons press release shared by the Jackson County Sheriff's Office, including an undated photo of Wells provided to the them.
Jackson County Sheriff's Office
Crump said in a statement that his office will conduct an independent review of the circumstances surrounding Wells' death.
"Nolan Wells was a beloved son, teammate and friend who went out to celebrate the Fourth of July and never came home. His family deserves answers," said Crump in a statement. "They deserve the truth. We will not rest until every fact about what happened to Nolan on Horn Island is brought into the light, and we call on investigators to pursue this case with the urgency and transparency this family deserves."
In a Wednesday interview with Don Lemon, Crump said the family was seeking an independent autopsy. Crump told Lemon they would be flying Wells' body to Washington, D.C. for that autopsy and expects results from it on Friday.
Wells, along with a group of friends, traveled to Horn island on July 4. That night, his mother, Christine Wonsley, reported him missing and posted on social media, writing that he was last seen on the northwest tip of the island around 3:00 p.m.
The island, which is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore, is managed by the National Park Service and is primarily accessible by private boat. According to the NPS website, "there is no staff, drinking water, shelter, facilities, or communication on the island."
On July 6, a national park service ranger found Well's body on the northwest tip of Horn Island.
Ashlee Cole, a local chancery judge and the mother of one of Wells' friends, said her son, Warren, had been interviewed by the local sheriff's office.
"He saw Nolan last at around 3 pm on July 4th," Cole wrote in a Facebook post. "They left around 4:30 pm when the boat was taking on water and they had an issue with the bilge pump. Nolan made a decision to stay on the island and return inland later with another group of friends." Blige pumps are used to help remove excess water from the bottom of a boat.
It's still unclear why Wells was the only member of the group who did not return.
The case has attracted national attention online. In his interview with Don Lemon Wednesday, Attorney Ben Crump said officials have not yet told the family if they suspect foul play involved in Well's death.
As of Wednesday, a GoFundMe set up for the family to cover funeral and memorial expenses had raised over $230,000.
Wells, was a native of Ocean Springs, Mississippi and a wide receiver for Southwest Mississippi Community College's football team. His high school coach said in a statement Wells was the type of player coaches love:
"He was the kind of son, teammate, friend, and student every coach hopes to have in a program," Ocean Springs High School head coach Jake Bramlett said in a statement. "He carried himself with humility, treated others with respect, worked hard, and led by example."
His high school principal, Dr. Jacob Dykes, described him as a leader in the classroom as well.
"Nolan was a remarkable student, teammate, and brother," said Dykes in a statement. "He will be remembered as an extremely kind and hardworking young man who left a lasting impression on his teachers, coaches, teammates, and community. Our thoughts are with his family and the many people he made a lasting impact on around him."
Black Hair Care Pioneer and ‘Afro Sheen’ Creator George E. Johnson Dies at 99
George E. Johnson Sr., a legendary entrepreneur whose visionary cosmetics empire revolutionized the beauty industry and championed Black culture worldwide, has passed away. A spokesperson confirmed that the founder of Johnson Products Company died on Monday, July 6, in Chicago at the age of 99.
From humble beginnings in a Mississippi sharecropper’s shack to making history on Wall Street, Johnson’s life was an extraordinary blueprint of resilience, economic empowerment, and cultural pride.
Born in Richton, Mississippi, in 1927, Johnson moved to Chicago with his mother at a young age. He began working early as a shoe-shine boy before eventually finding a job as a production chemist for S.B. Fuller’s cosmetics firm in 1944.
In 1954, with just a $500 loan and the encouragement of his wife Joan and his brother, Johnson struck out on his own to establish Johnson Products Company. What started as a small venture targeting the Black men’s hair care market with “Ultra Wave” quickly transformed the entire landscape.
The company found massive success when it expanded into the women’s market with revolutionary products, beginning with the 1957 introduction of Ultra Sheen, a game-changing, home-use hair straightener.
In the late 1960s, the brand released Afro Sheen, an iconic product line that perfectly captured the cultural wave of the “Black is Beautiful” movement as the Afro became a prominent symbol of identity and pride.
Johnson didn’t just build a successful brand; he dismantled corporate color lines. In 1971, Johnson Products Company achieved a monumental milestone by becoming the first Black-owned company to be listed on a major stock exchange (the American Stock Exchange).
That same year, Johnson shattered another ceiling by becoming the first African American to serve on the board of directors for Commonwealth Edison. His business acumen and leadership eventually landed him positions on numerous prestigious boards, including MetLife, Northwestern University, and the Chicago Urban League.
Beyond the beauty aisle, Johnson recognized the vital importance of financial independence and cultural representation for Black Americans. In 1964, he co-founded Independence Bank, the first Black-owned financial institution to operate in Chicago in more than 30 years following the Great Depression.
His cultural impact expanded globally in the 1970s when Johnson Products became the exclusive sponsor behind Don Cornelius‘s nationally syndicated television dance and music show, Soul Train.
NAACP announces its largest-ever spending on a midterm election
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The group plans a $20 million campaign to mobilize Black voters following a Supreme Court decision expected to reduce the number of nonwhite members of Congress.
Rosetta Miller-Perry, Editor and Publisher of the Tennessee Tribune, Left an Indelible Mark on Nashville
A belief in equal justice and opportunity, as well as a fierce desire to serve and aid those less fortunate, distinguished the impressive life of Rosetta Miller-Perry, publisher of the Tennessee Tribune, the country’s only statewide African American newspaper. Perry passed away on Friday at age 91.
While the Black community and experience were at the forefront of her many activities, Perry was equally vocal about the disparate impact of poverty, homelessness, drug addiction and many other social ills that affected numerous people regardless of race and background. Above all, she wanted to continually spotlight Black success stories, pioneers and trailblazers, presenting them as examples of folks who persevered and thrived despite the odds and obstacles they faced.
Prior to her long and storied career in publishing, Perry was a dedicated and passionate activist.
“Everything I’ve ever done in my life really has been for other people, not me,” Perry told NewsChannel5 in a 2021 interview, and that accurately summarized her pre-media career. She spent two decades on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, and also worked for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Perry was an observer in Memphis during the turbulent period of the late ’60s, when the sanitation workers strike and the subsequent assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. put Memphis into an unfavorable national spotlight. Though she wasn’t the type to boast, brag or name drop, during that time she was among the inner circle of key figures that included Dr. King, Rev. Ralph Abernathy, Andrew Young, Julian Bond and many others in the movement.
One thing that continually angered Perry was the lack of attention given to Blacks in mainstream newspapers at the time, other than articles about crime or other negative portrayals. So she decided to do something about it. Rather than just complain she wanted to create her own publication. But to the banks in Nashville during the early 1990s, loaning money to a Black woman so she could start a newspaper made zero fiscal sense. One after another they turned her down, so she used her own money to create Contempora magazine in 1990, and then the Tennessee Tribune in 1991. The Tribune‘s mission then and now was a straightforward one: Publish positive, inspirational and uplifting stories about the Black experience, while also being an advocate and watchdog for those constituencies and issues frequently overlooked by the mainstream press.
Over the course of her time as publisher-editor of the Tribune, Perry gained a reputation for toughness, a quality that was certainly required for any Black woman entrepreneur who came up in that era. She was unafraid to be bold and uncompromising in her editorial decisions. A prime example came in 2008. Throughout her life, Perry was always upset when people didn’t participate in the electoral process. When she discovered that folks registered to vote had not cast their ballots, Perry published their names and addresses in the Tribune.
“Sometimes when you embarrass people, they do the right thing,” Perry said in a 2008 interview.
As someone who has worked at the Tribune in two different stints, the current one since 2010, I can attest to her sometimes blunt critiques of stories or assessments of individual conduct. She also didn’t hesitate to take strong, sometimes unpopular stances if she felt she was right. But behind that tough veneer was someone truly concerned about the quality of life for her readers, and she would help anyone truly in need. She was extremely proud of having an office on Jefferson Street, and continually wary about the impact of gentrification on North Nashville residents.
Under her leadership, the Tribune has evolved into the largest Black-owned publication in the state, and is available not only in Nashville, but Knoxville, Memphis and Chattanooga. However Perry didn’t stop there in terms of community service. She established the Nashville Black Chamber of Commerce and the Anthony J. Cebrun Journalism Center. She was a Golden Heritage Member of the NAACP. Her influence and impact within Nashville’s Black political circles was immense, and the tributes rolled in as news of her passing circulated.
“When I thought about making my entrance into politics, I knew there was one place I had to go by, and that was to go by and talk to Ms. Perry,” Rep. Harold Love Jr. (D-Nashville) and pastor of Lee Chapel AME Church said in a statement Friday. “There were times before I got to know her where I was very scared of Mrs. Perry, because she had such a powerful influence.”
“Today my heart is heavy,” Nashville and Davidson County Assessor of Property Vivian Wilhoite said in a statement. “I have lost not only a giant in our community, but a dear friend and mentor. Mrs. Rosetta Miller-Perry poured wisdom into my life through countless late-night conversations about politics, family, leadership, faith and life. … She built institutions, elevated voices, and opened doors for generations of leaders.
“Thank you, Mrs. Perry, for believing in me, challenging me, and reminding me that leadership is always about serving others.”
Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Yuri Cunza also praised Miller-Perry’s career and cited her as a big influence. Cunza, in a statement to WKRN, celebrated Perry as “one of Nashville’s true community builders. She was a trailblazer whose impact extended far beyond the pages of the Tennessee Tribune. She understood the power of journalism to inform, unite, and strengthen a community.,” Cunza added. “You will be deeply missed.”
Fortunately, Rosetta Miller-Perry lived long enough to receive the honors she richly deserved for her accomplishments. These included getting a Publisher Lifetime Achievement Award from the NNPA in 2019 for her contributions to the Black press. In 2025 she was inducted into the Nashville Entrepreneur Center Hall of Fame. Her family plans to continue publishing the Tribune weekly.
Serena Williams loses in opening round at Wimbledon
Nashville NAACP town hall addresses data center possibility in Fisk University's master plan
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Nashville NAACP held a community town hall at Lee Chapel AME Church to discuss Fisk University's master plan, which includes the possibility of a data center on land the university already owns. President Dr. Agenia Clark answered questions from the community on environmental studies, water, and energy usage, and size. Clark emphasized the university is still working out details on the parameters of the data center, and what it will be used for.
"At Fisk, we haven't decided what it's gonna do because we haven't entered into any partnership conversations with anyone," she said.
Clark explained that no data center is the same, and how the facilities can differ from one another. She also provided perspective on what data centers can be used for.
"People really know the word data center, but that doesn't mean anything other than an adjective to describe a room full of GPUs, a building full of GPUs, a space full of GPUs. Which are big computers, just churning information and energy. What they are churning it for can vary. It can be to make sure when you click and order your Door Dash, and it tells you it will be there in 32 minutes, that could be running through a data center."
At Fisk, 30% of students major in computer science, and 50% of students are in STEM. Clark said the university needs to stay relevant in the field. She said environmental studies would be done once there is a clearer picture of what Fisk would want to build, and data center technology is changing everyday.
"We are having conversations about the dedicated power source we can tap into, we're having conversations about the latest technology for cooling systems that can cool all of those GPUs that are running 24/7. Those two things combined will mitigate the others problems of air pollution and noise pollution. There's a technological model around all of this."
The proposed facility has been discussed as a 30-megawatt data center inside the Innovation Center. Clark said the university will adhere to all regulations Metro Nashville decides on.
"We only have limited access to so much power, and energy well below 50 megawatts, but we don't have the final decision from Metro Council and Metro Planning as to what the parameters will be that they will allow for data centers to operate in the metro district."
One community member asked Clark how the data center would help with enrollment.
"It will be nice if we could just track the enrollment. It'll be nice if we have the tools that we can be immediate in our communications with students who apply. It will be fabulous if we can use information to make sure that not only we can reply, we can give them an update constantly on their enrollment status" she said.
State Sen. Charlane Oliver, State Rep. Harold M. Love Jr., and Metro Nashville Council Member Brandon Taylor were among those in attendance. The NAACP Nashville Branch hosted the town hall and plans to host two others.
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