Month: June 2022

Ghislaine Maxwell, the jet-setting socialite who once consorted with royals, presidents and billionaires, was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday for helping wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse underage girls.

The stiff sentence was the punctuation mark on a trial that explored the sordid rituals of a predator power couple who courted the rich and famous as they lured vulnerable girls as young as 14 and then exploited them.

Prosecutors said Epstein, who killed himself in 2019 while awaiting trial, sexually abused children hundreds of times over more than a decade and couldn’t have done so without the help of Maxwell, his longtime companion and onetime girlfriend. In December, a jury convicted Maxwell of sex trafficking, transporting a minor to participate in illegal sex acts and two conspiracy charges.

U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan, who also imposed a $750,000 fine, said “a very significant sentence is necessary” and that she wanted to send an “unmistakable message” that these kinds of crimes would be punished. Prosecutors had asked the judge to give her 30 to 55 years in prison, while Maxwell’s defense sought a lenient sentence of five years.

Maxwell, wearing a blue prison uniform and a white mask to conform with coronavirus rules, sat quietly before the sentencing, looking ahead as Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison Moe recounted how Maxwell subjected girls to “horrifying nightmares” by taking them to Epstein.

“They were partners in crime together and they molested these kids together,” she said, calling Maxwell “a person who was indifferent to the suffering of other human beings.”

When she had a chance to speak, Maxwell said she empathized with the survivors and that it was her “greatest regret of my life that I ever met Jeffrey Epstein.” Maxwell called him “a manipulative, cunning and controlling man who lived a profoundly compartmentalized life,” echoing her defense attorneys’ assertions, in court filings calling for a lenient sentence, that Epstein was the true mastermind.

Maxwell, who denies abusing anyone, said she hoped that her conviction and her “unusual incarceration” would bring some “measure of peace and finality.”

Several survivors described their sexual abuse, including Annie Farmer, whose voice cracked several times as she said, “we will continue to live with the harm she caused us.”

Farmer said she and her sister tried to go public with their stories about Epstein and Maxwell two decades ago, only to be shut down by the powerful couple through threats and influence with authorities.

Inside the crowded courtroom, three of Maxwell’s siblings sat in a row behind her. Most of the others in attendance were members of the media.

Epstein and Maxwell’s associations with some of the world’s most famous people were not a prominent part of the trial, but mentions of friends such as Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Britain’s Prince Andrew showed how the pair exploited their connections to impress their prey.

Over the past 17 years, scores of women have accused Epstein of abusing them. Many described Maxwell as acting as a madam who recruited them to give massages to Epstein.

The trial, though, revolved around allegations from only a handful of those women.

Four testified that they were abused as teens in the 1990s and early 2000s at Epstein’s mansions in Florida, New York, New Mexico and the Virgin Islands.

Three were identified in court only by their first names or pseudonyms to protect their privacy: Jane, a television actress; Kate, an ex-model from the U.K.; and Carolyn, now a mom recovering from drug addiction. The fourth was Farmer, the sole accuser to identify herself in court by her real name, after speaking out publicly.

They described how Maxwell charmed them with conversation and gifts and promises that Epstein could use his wealth and connections to help fulfill their dreams.

Then, they testified, she led them to give massages to Epstein that turned sexual and played it off as normal.

Carolyn testified that she was one of several underprivileged teens who lived near Epstein’s Florida home in the early 2000s and took up an offer to massage him in exchange for $100 bills in what prosecutors described as “a pyramid of abuse.”

Maxwell made all the arrangements, Carolyn told the jury, even though she knew the girl was only 14 at the time.

The allegations against Epstein first surfaced publicly in 2005. He pleaded guilty to sex charges in Florida and served 13 months in jail, much of it in a work-release program as part of a deal criticized as lenient. Afterward, he was required to register as a sex offender.

In the years that followed, many women sued Epstein over alleged abuse. One, Virginia Giuffre, claimed that Epstein and Maxwell had also pressured her into sexual trysts with other powerful men, including Prince Andrew. All of those men denied the allegations and Giuffre ultimately settled a lawsuit against Andrew out of court.

Federal prosecutors in New York revived the case against Epstein after stories by the Miami Herald in 2018 brought new attention to his crimes. He was arrested in 2019 and killed himself a month later.

Eleven months after his death, Maxwell was arrested at a New Hampshire estate. A U.S., British and French citizen, she has remained in a federal jail in New York City since then as her lawyers repeatedly criticized her treatment, saying she was even unjustly placed under suicide watch days before sentencing. Prosecutors say the claims about the jail are exaggerated and that Maxwell has been treated better than other prisoners.

Her lawyers also fought to have her conviction tossed on the grounds of juror misconduct. Days after the verdict, one juror gave media interviews in which he disclosed he had been sexually abused as a child — something he hadn’t told the court during jury selection. Maxwell’s lawyers said she deserved a new trial. A judge disagreed.

At least eight women submitted letters to the judge, describing the sexual abuse they said they endured because of Maxwell and Epstein. Six of Maxwell’s seven living siblings wrote to plead for leniency. A fellow inmate submitted a letter describing how Maxwell has helped to educate other inmates over the past two years.

Anne Holve and Philip Maxwell, her eldest siblings, wrote that her relationship with Epstein began soon after the 1991 death of their father, the British newspaper magnate Robert Maxwell.

They said Robert Maxwell had subjected his daughter to “frequent rapid mood swings, huge rages and rejections.”

“This led her to becoming very vulnerable to abusive and powerful men who would be able to take advantage of her innate good nature,” they wrote.

Prosecutors called Maxwell’s shifting of blame to Epstein “absurd and offensive.”

Before her fate was announced, Maxwell looked down and scribbled on a notepad as Sarah Ransome — an accuser whose allegations weren’t included in this trial — spoke of the lasting harm to her life, gazing directly at Maxwell several times.

Ransome, who twice tried to die by suicide, finally drew a look from Maxwell when she said: “You broke me in unfathomable ways, but you did not break my spirit.”
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Authorities in the southern U.S. state of Texas found 46 migrants dead inside a tractor-trailer truck Monday.

San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood told reporters another 16 people were taken to the hospital for treatment of heat-related injuries, including four children.

The truck was found next to railroad tracks in a remote area on the southern outskirts of San Antonio. High temperatures in the city topped 39 degrees Celsius (103 degrees Fahrenheit) Monday with high humidity.

San Antonio police said they could not yet say where the people inside the truck were from. Federal authorities were in charge of the investigation.

Mexican Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard tweeted that, according to the Mexican consul who went to the area, there were two Guatemalans among those taken to the hospital.

Ebrard said the trailer had U.S. license plates, and that the incident was highly likely the work of human traffickers.

San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg called the situation “nothing short of a horrific human tragedy.”

“It’s tragic,” Nirenberg told reporters. “There are, that we know of, 46 individuals who are no longer with us who had families, who were likely trying to find a better life.”

In 2017, 10 migrants died after being trapped in a tractor-trailer that San Antonio police discovered in a Walmart parking lot. The driver of that truck was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the smuggling operation.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
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Since the U.S. Supreme Court first assembled in 1790, it has ruled on tens of thousands of cases. The court’s decisions have defined the country’s legal framework and shaped countless aspects of U.S. society. Here are some cases that had a large impact on American life.
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International aid is beginning to reach areas of eastern Afghanistan devastated by a deadly earthquake. But relief officials say much more will be needed. Fundraising in Southern California has raised more than $100,000 to help those affected. Genia Dulot has our story.
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For decades, Americans have been split over the contentious issue of abortion and when and how it should be legal. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned decades of law by ruling Friday that the Constitution does not guarantee women the right to an abortion, putting the issue back in front of voters. VOA’s congressional correspondent Katherine Gypson looks at how the ruling could impact key midterm elections in November that will determine control of the U.S. Congress.
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The Supreme Court said Monday that a high school football coach who knelt and prayed on the field after games was protected by the Constitution, a decision that opponents said would open the door to “much more coercive prayer” in public schools. 

The court ruled 6-3 for the coach with the conservative justices in the majority and the liberals in dissent. The case was the latest in a line of rulings for religious plaintiffs. 

The case forced the justices to wrestle with how to balance the religious and free speech rights of teachers and coaches with the rights of students not to feel pressured into participating in religious practices. The liberal justices in the minority said there was evidence that Bremerton (Washington) High School Coach Joseph Kennedy’s prayers at the 50-yard-line had a coercive effect on students and allowed him to incorporate his “personal religious beliefs into a school event.” 

Dissenting Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that the decision “sets us further down a perilous path in forcing states to entangle themselves with religion.” 

But the justices in the majority emphasized that the coach’s prayers came after the games were over and at a time when he wasn’t responsible for students and was free to do other things. 

The coach and his attorneys at First Liberty Institute, a Christian legal group, were among those cheering the decision. Kennedy said in an interview that his first reaction was one of pure joy. 

“Just like in all my football games I just threw my arms up, you know, ‘touchdown,'” he said. He described the seven years since the dispute began as tough on his family but “absolutely worth it.” 

Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for the majority in the ruling, declared, “The Constitution and the best of our traditions counsel mutual respect and tolerance, not censorship and suppression, for religious and nonreligious views alike. 

Gorsuch noted that the coach “prayed during a period when school employees were free to speak with a friend, call for a reservation at a restaurant, check email, or attend to other personal matters” and “while his students were otherwise occupied.” 

It would be wrong to treat everything public school teachers and coaches say and do as speech subject to government control, he wrote. If that were the case, “a school could fire a Muslim teacher for wearing a headscarf in the classroom or prohibit a Christian aide from praying quietly over her lunch in the cafeteria,” he wrote. 

He closed by writing that: “Respect for religious expressions is indispensable to life in a free and diverse Republic — whether those expressions take place in a sanctuary or on a field, and whether they manifest through the spoken word or a bowed head.” 

The decision continues a pattern in which the court has ruled in favor of religious plaintiffs. Last week the court ruled that Maine can’t exclude religious schools from a program that offers tuition aid for private education, a decision that could ease religious organizations’ access to taxpayer money. 

In dissent, Sotomayor wrote Monday that players “recognize that gaining the coach’s approval may pay dividends small and large, from extra playing time to a stronger letter of recommendation to additional support in college athletic recruiting.” And she said, “some students reported joining Kennedy’s prayer because they felt social pressure to follow their coach and teammates.” 

Sotomayor was joined in her dissent by Justices Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan. 

Paul Clement, the attorney who argued the case on behalf of Kennedy, said in a statement that the decision would allow the coach “to finally return to the place he belongs — coaching football and quietly praying by himself after the game.” 

Kennedy now lives in Florida, and it was unclear when — or if — he might move back across the country to Washington state for a part-time job that had paid him less than $5,000. He said in the interview that he is in Florida to help his father-in-law, but his family remains in Washington, and it was never his intention to remain in Florida permanently. He said his lawyers and the school district would need to work things out for him to return to coaching. 

He started coaching at the school in 2008 and initially prayed alone on the 50-yard line at the end of games. Students started joining him, and over time he began to deliver a short, inspirational talk with religious references. Kennedy did that for years and also led students in locker room prayers. The school district learned what he was doing in 2015 and asked him to stop out of concern the district could be sued for violating students’ religious freedom rights. 

He stopped leading students in prayer in the locker room and on the field but wanted to continue kneeling and praying on the field himself after games. The school asked him not to do so while still “on duty” as a coach after the games. When he continued, the school put him on paid leave. The head coach of the varsity team later recommended he not be rehired because, among other things, he failed to follow district policy. 

In a statement, the Bremerton School District and its attorneys at Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, said the decision undermines the separation required by the Constitution. The school district said in a statement that it had “followed the law and acted to protect the religious freedom of all students and their families.” 

Rachel Laser, the head of Americans United, said the decision “opens the door to much more coercive prayer in our public schools” and undermines the religious freedom of students. 

The school district’s attorney, Richard Katskee, said it is studying the decision and considering its next steps. 

Three justices on the court — Breyer, Kagan and Justice Samuel Alito — attended public high schools, while the other six attended Catholic schools. 

The case is Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, 21-418. 

 
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The United States expressed concern Monday about “palpable and dangerous” tensions between Israelis and Palestinians, ahead of a visit next month by President Joe Biden to the region.

“We once again call on all parties to refrain from unilateral actions that increase tensions and undercut efforts to advance a negotiated two-state solution, such as settlement activity, demolitions, incitement to violence and evictions,” the deputy U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Mills, told a meeting of the Security Council on the issue of Israeli settlements.

Biden will visit Israel and the West Bank and then continue to Saudi Arabia from July 13 through July 16.

The White House says the president plans to meet with Israeli leaders to discuss that country’s “security, prosperity, and its increasing integration into the greater region.” Biden will also visit the West Bank to meet with Palestinian Authority officials.

Mills said that during the trip, Biden will “urge calm and explore ways to promote equal measures of security, freedom and opportunity for both Israelis and Palestinians.”

U.S.-Palestinian relations hit a low in 2020, when the Trump administration unveiled its Middle East peace plan. The Palestinians rejected it outright, saying it heavily favored Israel and did not give them a sovereign, contiguous state with East Jerusalem as its capital. The Trump administration also moved the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, angering the Palestinians. Biden has criticized that move but has not reversed it.

The United Nations says violence has increased in recent months in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and in Israel. Since mid-March, the U.N. says 49 Palestinians, including several children, have been killed in demonstrations and clashes with Israeli forces, while 11 Israelis and three foreign nationals have been killed in attacks inside Israel.

“As events over recent months have demonstrated yet again, managing the conflict in perpetuity is not a viable option,” Tor Wennesland, U.N. special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, told the council from Jerusalem. “There is no substitute for a legitimate political process that will resolve the core issues driving the conflict.”

Palestinian-American journalist’s death

Biden is also likely to face questions from Palestinian officials about the death of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot and killed May 11 while covering an Israeli operation in the West Bank city of Jenin. Abu Akleh was also a U.S. citizen.

The U.N. office for human rights said Friday that information it had gathered was “consistent with the finding” that Abu Akleh was killed by fire from Israeli Security Forces and not from indiscriminate firing by armed Palestinians, as Israeli authorities initially claimed. The U.N. rights office said its monitors also found no information suggesting activity by armed Palestinians in the immediate vicinity of Abu Akleh and her colleagues.

“We, like others on this council, are concerned with the killing of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh,” Mills told the Security Council. “We continue to stress the importance of accountability for Abu Akleh’s tragic death. The United States will not relent on our calls for transparent accountability for those responsible for this tragedy until justice is done.”

Asked last week by a reporter if Biden would raise Abu Akleh’s killing during his trip to Israel, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the administration wants her death “fully investigated,” and the president would not be “bashful” about raising human rights and press freedom issues “with any foreign leader anywhere in the world.”

VOA’s Anita Powell contributed to this story.
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“I pumped my fist a bunch of times in the air and I let out a big ‘Yes!’” a beaming Alita Bryant said as she recalled her reaction Friday when she heard the momentous news she had been waiting so long to hear. The U.S. Supreme Court had overturned a constitutional right to abortion, leaving it up to states to decide whether to permit, restrict or ban the procedure that has been legal nationwide for nearly 50 years.

Bryant spoke with VOA while attending a Sunday service at Lighthouse Christian Fellowship Church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, dressed casually in jeans and an official black and white church t-shirt.

From the outside, the place of worship looks more like a business than a typical church, having been converted from a pharmacy. Inside, however, palpable excitement coursed through the congregation of about 80 churchgoers. Nearly all, like Bryant, were African American. Many showed up early to worship before the service began.

“We’re thankful – it’s a victory for us,” Bryant said. “Innocent children won’t be murdered anymore, at least not in Louisiana. We still have work to do before it’s a national ban.”

Louisiana is one of several states with so-called trigger laws that were put in place to outlaw abortion the moment Roe vs. Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling that legalized the procedure, was overturned. Abortion rights proponents say banning the procedure in entire swaths of the United States will put women’s lives at risk, especially those of poor and minority women.

An NPR/PBS/Marist poll released Monday shows 56% oppose the Supreme Court ruling on abortion, with 40% supporting it and 4% unsure. Other polls have shown similar numbers.

Lighthouse Christian Fellowship Church, like many socially conservative places of worship in America, is part of a coalition that has been working to rescind abortion rights in America for decades. Many in the congregation stood, cheering in response to Pastor Mike Wicker as he alternated between reading bible verses projected onto screens and speaking at length about the evils of abortion.

“Every person in here,” the pastor’s voice boomed, echoing off ceilings lower than you’d expect in a place of worship, “thank God your momma made the right decision and didn’t bring you to the abortion clinic.”

“Now,” Bryant noted after the service, “those clinics are closed.”

A personal history

Several members of Lighthouse Christian Fellowship visited a Baton Rouge abortion clinic Monday and Tuesday of last week.

There, they saw 40 women lined up, many alone.

“And nearly all of them were Black,” Bryant added, her voice cracking with emotion. “I felt angry, because these children were needlessly going to be murdered, sad because I don’t think the mothers had all the information about their options, and desperate because I wanted to help.”

In the end, she said they convinced two women to go home and reconsider aborting their pregnancies, an option that disappeared in Louisiana after the Supreme Court decision, as the state’s three clinics ceased performing abortions. On Monday, a state judge temporarily blocked Louisiana from enforcing the trigger law, allowing clinics to resume, but the future availability of abortion services in the state remains murky. 

Tara Wicker is the pastor’s wife, known also as the first lady of Lighthouse Christian Fellowship. She also visited the clinic. For Wicker, who heads Louisiana Black Advocates for Life, an anti-abortion advocacy organization, the fight against abortion is deeply personal.

“I had an abortion myself when I was 16 years old,” she told VOA after Sunday’s service. “I was just a child and we didn’t even talk about it. I was just kind of ushered off for an abortion. I’ll never forget laying in the bed with my aborted fetus in a jar on the counter across the room.”

“‘Momma’s sorry,’ I remember saying.”

Wicker said for 30 years and until only recently, she tried to suppress her emotions about that day.

“It made me insecure as a mother of the six children I have now,” she said, her eyes appearing serious and thoughtful. “When someone doubts me as a mother, I get angry and defensive because I think about how I failed that baby three decades ago.”

Abortion rights advocates contend that women will continue to seek out the procedure regardless of what a state’s law says and may be forced to consider unsafe options for terminating a pregnancy. Wicker said that needn’t be the case

“I look at the women lined up at the clinic and I remember being like them,” she said. “They don’t have to kill those babies. They have so many options. As a sanctuary we need to help them understand those options because killing that baby will haunt the mother for the rest of her life.”

Just beginning

Robert Sensley was also in attendance on Sunday. He is stout, standing 1.7 meters tall with fashionable rectangular glasses and a warm smile.

He attended the service with his three young children and his wife. In addition to being a member of the church, Sensley is also the program assistant for Louisiana Black Advocates for Life.

“The last few days have been joyful for sure,” he told VOA. “Pastor Mike and Tara were so excited about the Supreme Court decision, they both called me at the exact same time from opposite ends of their house without realizing.”

Sensley, however, stopped short of calling the atmosphere celebratory.

“We’re excited, but we also know we have a long way to go,” he said. “There are a lot of people in this country who don’t agree with us.”

In data compiled by the Pew Research Center, in cases of pregnancies caused by rape or incest, for example, 69% of Americans believe abortions should be legal.

A junior at Louisiana State University, Trinity Wicker said she hears from many friends and classmates – particularly on social media – who believe abortion rights should be protected.

“I understand where they’re coming from. Sexual assault is a horrible thing,” Wicker said. “The mother is a victim, but so is the baby; and that baby – with limitless potential – doesn’t deserve to die.”

The younger Wicker, the daughter of the pastor and his wife, said she sees it as part of the church’s responsibility to help women in difficult situations understand their options.

“Adoption is always an option, of course,” she said, before re-emphasizing that killing the fetus shouldn’t be.

“I’ve noticed a lot of women saying things like, ‘My body, my choice’ as an excuse to have an abortion. But when your egg is fertilized, it is no longer your body. It’s another body and you are the vessel.”

A sanctuary

Many members of Lighthouse Christian Fellowship do not believe abortion should be prohibited in all circumstances, such as when the life of the mother is at risk.

“Everything should be done to save both the mother and the child, but I, of course, would want my wife saved if we had to make a choice,” Sensley explained.

Louisiana’s trigger law has no exceptions for rape or incest but does allow the procedure to save a pregnant woman’s life. The law does not punish women who terminate pregnancies but establishes criminal penalties for anyone who performs an abortion.

Punishing abortion providers is as it should be, according to Tara Wicker.

“I think we have to be empathetic towards these women and try to help them,” she said, “but the medical professionals who complete the procedure should be tried for murder.”

Church leaders at Lighthouse Christian Fellowship say they wrestle with the fact that African American women disproportionally seek abortions and will be disproportionately affected by the new legal landscape governing the procedure.

A 2020 study by the Charlotte Lozier Institute found that Black women have experienced induced abortions at a rate approximately four times that of white women.

The solution, according to churchgoers, includes providing more access to employment and education to adults, as well as boosting health care and other services to help women bring their pregnancy to term and help them rear the children in their care. America does not have universal health care, nor does it guarantee access to child care for working parents.

“This is something we spend a lot of time talking about,” Sensley said, recalling words from the service he just attended. “If you only want to ban abortions without fighting to support that baby and its parents once the birth takes place, then you’re not pro-life…you’re just pro-birth.”

“It all goes hand in hand,” Tara Wicker agreed. “The role of our church is to support the whole life of the people who walk through our doors – from womb to tomb. The whole thing. We need to be supportive enough to help people do the right thing, but also forgive them when they don’t.”
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American journalist Austin Tice has been missing in Syria for 10 years. His family from Texas advocates tirelessly to bring him home. VOA’s Sirwan Kajjo has more.
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The Colorado Avalanche defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 Sunday night to win the National Hockey League’s Stanley Cup. 

The Avalanche won the best-of-7 series four games to two, denying the Lighting in their quest to become the first team to win three consecutive NHL championships since the New York Islanders in the early 1980s. 

Tampa Bay star Steven Stamkos gave the lightning an early 1-0 lead with a first period goal. 

But the Avalanche responded in the second period, with center Nathan MacKinnon evening the game 1-1 less than two minutes into the period. 

Colorado winger Artturi Lehkonen put the Avalanche ahead 2-1 midway through period, the score that would hold as they defeated Tampa Bay on their home ice. 

Colorado defenseman Cale Makar won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player during the playoffs.
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Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic “Elvis” shook up theaters with an estimated $30.5 million in weekend ticket sales, but — in a box-office rarity — “Elvis” tied “Top Gun: Maverick,” which also reported $30.5 million, for No. 1 in theaters.

Final figures Monday, once Sunday’s grosses are tabulated, will sort out which film ultimately won the weekend. With a high degree of accuracy, studios can forecast Sunday sales based on Friday and Saturday business, though numbers often shift by a few hundred thousand dollars.

But for now, the unlikely pair of “Elvis” and “Maverick” are locked in a dance off (if you favor “Elvis”) or a dead heat (if you prefer “Maverick”). That it was this close at all was due to both a better-than-expected opening for “Elvis” and remarkably strong continued sales for “Top Gun: Maverick.” The “Top Gun” sequel reached $1 billion in worldwide box office in its fifth week of release.

“Elvis,” starring newcomer Austin Butler as Presley, came into the weekend with expectations closer to $25 million. Among recent music biopics, a $30.5 million debut puts the King ahead of the pace of Elton John (“Rocketman” launched with $25.7 million in 2019) though not in the same class as Freddie Mercury (“Bohemian Rhapsody” opened with $51.1 million in 2018).

“I’m less concerned with who’s number one and who’s number two, and I’m more concerned that we hit this big number given that this audience has been the slowest to return to movie theaters,” said Jeff Goldstein, distribution chief for Warner Bros.

About 60% of the audience for “Elvis” was over the age of 35. Older audiences have been among the most hesitant to return to theaters in the pandemic but that’s changing — in part, Goldstein noted, because of “Top Gun,” which brought back fans of the 1986 original.

“Elvis,” which cost about $85 million to make, was propelled by strong reviews (78% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), good word of mouth (an A- CinemaScore) and a glitzy Cannes Film Festival premiere. It added $20 million overseas over the weekend.

“Elvis” ranks as Luhrmann’s second best opening after 2013’s “The Great Gatsby” ($50.1 million). Luhrmann was on the cusp of beginning production in Australia when, in an indelible early moment in the pandemic, star Tom Hanks tested positive for COVID-19.

“‘Elvis’ was a risky proposition: the music is dated, the character is not directly familiar, and the lead actor is unproven on the big screen,” David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research wrote in a newsletter. “But critics and audiences are responding. This is the Baz Luhrmann show, a music, dance and sex appeal spectacular — it’s a hit.”

Meanwhile, “Top Gun: Maverick” continues to soar. The Paramount Pictures film became the first 2022 release to reach $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales, and the first starring Tom Cruise to do so.

In its fifth weekend of release, “Maverick” dipped just 32% domestically to bring its total so far to $521.7 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters. It continues to move up the record books, sitting 15th all-time domestically, not accounting for inflation. Internationally, the “Top Gun” sequel added another $44.5 million.

The “Elvis”/”Top Gun” showdown — along with the new Blumhouse horror release “The Black Phone” and big holdovers in “Jurassic World: Dominion” and Pixar’s “Lightyear” — made for one of the most competitive, and busy, weekends in movie theaters in the pandemic era.

Most studios came away celebrating, though Disney’s “Lightyear” dropped a steep 65% in its second weekend. After opening softly last week, the “Toy Story” spinoff grossed $17.7 million domestically, falling to fifth place. “Lightyear,” which has made $152 million worldwide to date, will soon face more competition for families with the Friday release of “Minions: The Rise of Gru.”

Counterprogramming came from Universal Pictures’ “The Black Phone,” the Scott Derrickson-directed supernatural thriller starring Ethan Hawke as an escaped killer. The Blumhouse production rode strong reviews (84% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) to a better-than-expected launch of $23.4 million.

After two weeks in first place, Universal’s “Jurassic World: Dominion” took in $26.4 million, sliding to third. It’s now passed $300 million domestically and hauled in $746.7 million globally.

A much smaller-scaled film, “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On,” debuted with good sales in limited release. The warmly received stop-motion animation film, in which Jenny Slate voices a one-inch-tall mollusk with a googly eye, opened with $169,606 on six screens, for a per-screen average of $28,267.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. (Tie) “Elvis,” $30.5 million.

2. (Tie) “Top Gun: Maverick,” $30.5 million.

3. “Jurassic World: Dominion,” $26.4 million.

4. “Black Phone,” $23.4 million.

5. “Lightyear,” $17.7 million.

6. “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” $1.7 million.

7. “Jugjugg Jeeyo,” $725,000.

8. “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” $533,000.

9. “The Bob’s Burgers Movie,” $513,000.

10. “The Bad Guys,” $440,000.
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U.S. President Joe Biden comes to the Group of Seven summit with the war in Ukraine showing no signs of stopping and China’s ambition spreading. The White House says they are committed to countering these issues. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Telfs, Austria.
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