Sean “Diddy” Combs has been placed on suicide watch inside the Brooklyn jail where he awaits trial for his alleged sex crimes as the 54-year-old’s mental state is unclear, according to a report.
The rapper being added to the watch is a “preventative measure” days after he was arrested on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution, sources told People.
Officials ruled the 54-year-old is shocked and his mental state is unclear, the outlet reported.
The National Toy Hall of Fame is floating the idea of inducting balloons.
Praised for their versatility and universal appeal, balloons made the list Wednesday of 12 finalists being considered for the honor later this year, alongside other first-time contenders including the trampoline and the party game Apples to Apples.
A panel of expert judges and the public will vote on which of the finalists will be inducted in November.
This year’s nominees also include the bestselling “Choose Your Own Adventure” gamebooks, which encourage readers to plot stories; Hess Toy Trucks, which have signaled the holiday season since 1964; remote-controlled vehicles and the stick horse.
Rounding out the list are the games Phase 10, Sequence and the Pokemon Trading Card Game, along with two perennial nominees, My Little Pony figures – a seven-time finalist – and Transformers action figures, both of which debuted in the 1980s.
“These 12 toys represent the wide range of play – from strategic to whimsical to physical – and present many playful matchups. The selection judges and public will have some tough decisions this year,” predicted Christopher Bensch, vice president for collections and chief curator.
Anyone can nominate a toy for the Hall of Fame. The museum received 2,400 nominations for 382 different toys over the past year, Bensch said, and then boiled down the list to 12 finalists that best meet the criteria for induction. Toys have to have longevity, be recognizable and have great “play value,” he said, meaning they encourage things like creativity and socialization.
“Not the ones that you roll your eyes at your grandparents and shove it under your bed at your birthday,” he said.
Fans can vote for their favorites from Sept. 18 to 25 at toyhalloffame.org. The three toys that receive the most public votes will make up a “Player’s Choice” ballot that will be tallied along with ballots from 22 historians and other experts.
Since 1998, the National Toy Hall of Fame has recognized more than 80 toys for inspiring creative play across generations. They range from humble playthings like the stick, paper airplane and cardboard box to those that have influenced pop culture, like the Barbie doll and Dungeons & Dragons.
Bensch can’t help but wonder whether this year’s seventh trip to the finals will prove lucky for My Little Pony.
“That’s a lot of the times to be sort of a bridesmaid and never a bride,” he said.
Last year’s inductees were baseball cards, Cabbage Patch Kids, Fisher-Price Corn Popper and Nerf foam toys. The National Toy Hall of Fame is inside The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York.
FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — Several residents in the Cinco Ranch neighborhood are on high alert after the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office said a man had gone door to door pretending to be security personnel.
The man seen in doorbell camera footage is who Cinco Ranch neighbors believe to be behind a strange, unusual, and bizarre encounter at their doorsteps.
“It’s shocking. Obviously, I haven’t had anything like this before,” Ben Simiskey said, referring to last Saturday when his son answered the door to a stranger knocking and claiming he was part of a security team.
“He called himself ‘DaVinci’ and said he was part of a new neighborhood security, and he was coming around to introduce himself, and that he often has to jump people’s fences, and what he said, it was mainly in the middle of the night,” Simiskey said.
According to Simiskey, the man told his son that he flies drones, and from there, it took an even more disturbing turn.
“He began to ask my son if anyone in the house walks around naked, and so, my son had no idea how to respond to that, understandably,” Simiskey said.
He said that according to other neighbors, multiple encounters have happened in the Cinco Ranch area, and the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office is urging the community to be on the lookout.
“Don’t open the door, talk to this individual through the door, or call your local law enforcement agency when you first see him or you assume that you see him. I don’t want them to confront him,” Fort Bend County Sheriff Eric Fagan said.
As authorities continue the search, neighbors are also coming together, taking matters into their own hands.
“It’s a good time to review when you are answering the door. Who are you talking to you? What information are you providing, making sure we have that with our family, friends and neighbors?” Simiskey suggested.
FBCSO is also on the lookout. Deputies have a description of what they believe is the truck he was driving, and patrol units are in the area searching for him.
DEER PARK, Texas (KTRK) — Human remains were found inside the white SUV that was pulled from the site of the pipeline fire on the border of Deer Park and La Porte, police confirmed Thursday morning.
Officials believe the vehicle crashed into a valve and sparked the fire that’s been burning for days.
SkyEye was live over the scene during Eyewitness News at 7 a.m. as crews hooked up the burned SUV with a winch and dragged it away onto Spencer Highway on Thursday.
The vehicle officials believe crashed into a valve, igniting a pipeline fire near Spencer Highway in the Deer Park/La Porte area has been removed.
Investigators surrounded the vehicle and looked inside.
Harris County medical examiners recovered and removed the remains. They’ll now begin working through the identification process, which will take some time, Deer Park police say.
The fire has been burning since the crash on Monday morning, though the flames now are noticeably smaller.
RELATED: Pipeline owner Energy Transfer still not answering questions on Deer Park fire’s 2nd day
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The calendar might say fall begins on Sunday, but the weather has not gotten the memo. Record highs could fall Thursday and Friday as temperatures soar into the upper 90s.
Temperatures Thursday should climb to the upper 90s in the middle of the afternoon. Houston’s record high of 97 degrees from 1995 is in jeopardy of falling.
High temperatures should remain at or above 90 degrees for the next 10 days, but we do see some humidity relief on the way next week.
At this time, it looks like we’ll have to wait until the first week of October for any chance of a meaningful cool front to visit us here in Southeast Texas, but next week’s front should at least drop the humidity and bring us some mornings in the 60s by next weekend.
We continue to see signs that a storm could lift out of the Caribbean and into the Gulf late next week. Head to our daily Tropical Update page for the latest on what’s happening in the tropics.
DEER PARK, Texas (KTRK) — Many people living near the site of Monday’s pipeline explosion were allowed to return to their homes for the first time Wednesday.
But not everyone was prepared for what they found as noticeably smaller flames continued to burn.
Steve and Diane Hutto’s home, just yards from the pipeline on East Meadow Drive, survived the fire for the most part, except for a partially melted backyard storage shed.
However, the water from the fire hoses trained on it to prevent it from igniting severely damaged their home of 14 years.
“Everything is just soaking wet: the walls, the couches, the clothes, everything. I don’t think we can save anything,” Diane Hutto said.
RELATED: Residents who evacuated allowed back into their homes 2 days after Deer Park pipeline blast
One thing that survived was pictures of Steve Hutto’s son, which were sealed away in a plastic container in a closet.
“We were really concerned about that because he had passed away, and that’s all he has of his son,” Diane Hutto said.
The City of Deer Park announced that people living in the evacuation zone would be allowed to return to their homes as early as 6 p.m.
However, Eyewitness News saw several returning before then.
The Huttos said they were able to return Wednesday morning to retrieve belongings, and Areanna Molero said authorities escorted her to her house to retrieve items Tuesday.
RELATED: Pipeline owner Energy Transfer still not answering questions on Deer Park fire’s 2nd day
“We just have a lot of heat damage. Some broken windows, some melted areas, like meters, are not working,” Morelo said.
The heat melted the back half of her parents’ car, and there were shutters on nearby homes.
Eyewitness News spoke to a homeowner who said she returned Wednesday to find her door open and her caged pet birds missing.
She said the heat had damaged her house and several of her vehicles.
The city is now estimating the fire will be out Thursday night.
SAN DIEGO, California (KTRK) — The Houston Astros claimed victory Tuesday night in San Diego, but not before Jose Altuve did something unprecedented in baseball history: showing his barefoot.
The Astros star got into a heated argument with home plate umpire Brennan Miller during the ninth inning of the club’s 4-3 win at Petco Park. Altuve took issue with Miller’s call of a swinging groundout that the second baseman insisted was a foul ball off his left foot.
The video above offers fast facts about Altuve.
Altuve would have gotten another chance to register a hit had Miller called the foul ball. But the umpire went with the third-out grounder call that ended the Astros’ opportunity to pull ahead in a 3-3 ball game in the high-stakes matchup.
Game telecast replays showed the ball clipping off Altuve’s big toe, which was something that the former American League MVP got ready to show Miller. As Astros manager Joe Espada came out to argue with Miller, Altuve took off his left cleat and sock and touched the ballfield dirt with a barefoot. Miller took a look, paused a second, and sent Altuve to the clubhouse early. Miller also tossed Espada, becoming the latest Astros dugout coach to face ejection in three straight games.
Sports TV personality and ‘Stros pitcher Justin Verlander’s brother, Ben Verlander, also took issue, mainly because Miller was allowed to ask his fellow umpires for a second opinion, which he declined to do.
How did Altuve explain his act?
“Sometimes you get hit somewhere in the hand, and you take your batting glove to show you got hit. I was expecting to do the same thing,” Altuve said.
Espada stood up for Altuve.
“It’s a foul ball,” the manager said. “You have to see the ball once he hits the foot, the flight of the ball. I don’t get it. I don’t understand. That’s twice this year. I have a lot of respect for the umpires. They work hard. But there are four out there. You have to be able to see it. They missed that call.”
In a bit of irony, infielder Grae Kessinger came off the bench to replace Altuve at second base, affording him the position of the unearned runner on second to start the top of the 10th inning. Not only did he score the go-ahead run off a balk and a Kyle Tucker RBI, but Kessinger registered the game-saving final out by collecting Manny Machado’s sharply hit ball with bases loaded in time to get the out at second.
“As he started to untie his shoe, I started to grab my glove. I didn’t know if I was the one that was going to be going in, but I didn’t know what he was doing, but I was just getting ready,” Kessinger said about Altuve’s ejection.
The victory was huge for the AL West-leading Astros. Along with a Seattle loss, Houston enters Wednesday’s series finale with San Diego with a magic number of seven to clinch another division crown.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Several Houston-area schools reported unrelated incidents involving weapons or threats on campus within hours on Wednesday.
Among them was a stabbing at about 10 a.m. at Houston ISD’s Sterling High School, which was briefly placed on lockdown following the event.
HISD said the stabbing stemmed from a fight between two students on campus.
The student stabbed was taken to the hospital in unknown condition. The suspect, also a student at the school, was placed into custody.
READ MORE: Lockdown lifted at Sterling HS after student stabbed during fight, suspect arrested, HISD says
Then, Alief ISD said Elsik High School was placed on lockdown because a student reportedly brought a kitchen knife to school.
“Once all involved parties were apprehended, the campus was placed in secure status,” the district said in a statement.
The secure mode was later lifted, and classes resumed as normal. The district did not release any other details about the incident.
Shortly after that, Spring ISD announced a student at Spring High School was detained for having a firearm on campus.
In a letter to parents, the principal said the weapon had been located in a theater and safely retrieved.
Spring ISD’s police department is investigating how the gun made it on campus.
District officials added that the student could face criminal charges.
At about 12:15 p.m., HISD said Bellaire High School students remained in their classrooms after the campus received a bomb threat.
Police responded to the school while the threat was being investigated, officials said.
“After a thorough interior and exterior building search, HISD PD determined there was no threat to our campus. As of 2:20 p.m., our campus has been cleared by HISD police. Classes continue as normal,” an email from the school principal read.
NEW YORK — A judge on Wednesday denied bail again for music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs as he faces federal charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Combs was ordered held without bail at his arraignment on Tuesday when he pleaded not guilty, but returned to court Wednesday to appeal the decision.
Judge Andrew Carter denied bail and ordered Combs remanded into custody. His attorney said he was expected to be held in the special housing unit of New York’s Metropolitan Detention Center – Brooklyn.
Carter said the government had provided sufficient evidence to demonstrate Combs is a danger to the community and a danger to obstruct justice and intimidate witnesses.
He said the defense’s proposal for bail could not guarantee Combs would not obstruct justice or tamper with witnesses. Carter is expected to preside over Combs’ case until the end.
On Monday night – following a slew of sexual assault lawsuits and a federal human trafficking probe in the past year – Combs was arrested at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan and taken into custody by Homeland Security Investigations, a source familiar with negotiations for his surrender told CNN.
Judge Robyn Tarnofsky ruled in a New York court on Tuesday that Combs will stay in custody while he faces charges. He faces a sentence of up to life in prison if convicted.
RELATED: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs arrest and abuse allegations: A timeline of key events
Prosecutors allege Combs, 54, created and ran a “criminal enterprise” through his business empire that engaged in crimes including sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice, according to the federal indictment.
The indictment states that Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct” for more than adecade.
Specifically, the indictment accuses Combs of working with other associates and employees, alleges he hosted drug-fueled “freak offs” with victims and sex workers, notes instances of physical and sexual abuse and illuminates what law enforcement found in the March raids of his homes.
In court, prosecutors argued the music mogul should not be released because he had previously reached out to witnesses and victims. Meanwhile, Combs’ defense attorneys proposed to put him on home detention with a $50 million bond secured by his Miami residence, according to a bail motion Tuesday.
The judge told Combs there were no conditions she could find to assure her that he would appear in court if released. Tarnofsky said her concern is “this is a crime that happens behind closed doors, even when pretrial services is monitoring.”
If the bail appeal is denied, Combs will be remanded back to the detention center. Combs’ lawyer Marc Agnifilo told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Tuesday night that Combs will likely not take a plea deal.
“I believe he’s innocent of the charges, and he is going to go to trial, and I believe he’s going to win,” Agnifilo said.
In court Tuesday, Assistant US Attorney Emily Johnson said Combs should be detained because he is a “serial abuser and a serial obstructor,” adding pretrial services also recommended detention.
Agnifilo asserted the case is about “one victim” – an argument fiercely opposed by federal prosecutors. In a rebuttal, Johnson emphasized, “This is not a case about one victim. There are multiple victims.”
Since last November, Combs has been hit with 10 lawsuits – nine directly accusing him of sexual assault.
ALSO SEE: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs faces new sex trafficking allegations in lawsuit filed by former porn star
“Members and associates of the Combs Enterprise engaged in, and attempted to engage in, among other activities, sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution, coercion and enticement to engage in prostitution, narcotics offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice,” the indictment states.
During Combs’ detention hearing, federal prosecutors said at least a dozen witnesses personally observed the music mogul’s violence against women or the injuries they sustained at his hands. Prosecutors also noted Combs had reached out to victims and witnesses, some of whom are scared of him.
Agnifilo told CNN on Tuesday night that he has “flown around the country,” interviewing a “large number” of men who are alleged witnesses in the case and argued the “freak offs” – what the indictment described as “elaborate and produced” sex performances in which he drugged and coerced victims into extended sex acts with male sex workers – were consensual acts among adults.
“Nobody was too drunk. Nobody was too high,” he said.
The indictment accuses Combs of years of abuse that “was, at times, verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual.” Combs “engaged in a persistent and pervasive pattern of abuse toward women and other individuals,” the indictment states.
Johnson told the judge Tuesday that the investigation uncovered evidence of Combs allegedly assaulting victims by choking, hitting, kicking and dragging victims.
The physical abuse in particular was “recurrent and widely known,” the indictment states, and occurred on “numerous” occasions from about 2009 and continued for years.
The sex trafficking charge is based on allegations against a single, unnamed “Victim-I” from about 2009 up to about 2018, the indictment states.
The indictment highlights a March 2016 incident, “which was captured on video and later publicly reported,” showing Combs kicking, dragging and throwing a vase at a woman. When a hotel staffer intervened, Combs attempted to bribe them for their silence, the indictment adds.
The details match up with CNN’s reporting in May of the video that showed Combs beating and kicking his then-girlfriend Casandra Ventura at a Los Angeles hotel. She is not named in the indictment.
RELATED: Cassie breaks silence on release of video showing Diddy assault in hotel
In November 2023, Ventura sued Combs and accused him of rape and years of abuse. In response, an attorney for Combs said he “vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations.” They settled the lawsuit a day after it was filed.
Attorney Douglas Wigdor, who represents Ventura, said in a statement Tuesday: “In response to the numerous inquiries we have received regarding the indictment of Sean Combs, neither Ms. Ventura nor I have any comment.”
The explosive surveillance video contradicted Combs’ earlier comments denying wrongdoing, and days afterward he posted an Instagram video apologizing. That video has since been deleted.
“My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video,” he said.
Combs’ attorney argued the 2016 video is not evidence of sex trafficking, as prosecutors suggested, but evidence of Combs “having more than one girlfriend and getting caught.”
“This was just a matter of personal embarrassment because he and the person in the video were in the midst of a 10-year relationship that was difficult at times, it was toxic at times, but it was mutually so,” Agnifilo told CNN Tuesday night.
Agnifilo asked the court Tuesday to allow Combs to remain out on bond prior to trial, saying he had no plans to flee and had “earned” the court’s trust.
The attorney said he took Combs’ and his family members’ passports and reported all of his domestic travel since he became involved in the investigation as a show to prosecutors they were taking this seriously. In addition, Combs is in treatment and therapy, which Agnifilo argued was a reason for release.
Agnifilo said he knew the music mogul was going to formally face charges on March 25, when the Homeland Security Investigations agency led dramatic searches of his Los Angeles and Miami homes.
Law enforcement seized guns, ammo, drugs and a huge collection of baby oil and lubricant during the searches, according to the indictment. The indictment accuses Combs of brandishing firearms “to intimidate and threaten others.”
RELATED: New video shows Homeland Security raid on Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs home in Los Angeles
By September, Agnifilo said he realized an indictment was “coming down in a matter of weeks, maybe months,” so he urged Combs to fly to New York. Agnifilo said he called federal prosecutors and said his client was willing to surrender.
When asked how Combs’ defense team would assure the court he wouldn’t pose a flight risk or communicate with witnesses, as prosecutors argued Tuesday, Agnifilo said: “The most important thing, even more than the passport, is that Mr. Combs came to New York on September 5.”
Agnifilo said he will argue the same points again Wednesday, and “we’ll make it as much as we can until we get him out.”
ABC News contributed to this report.
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