The Truck Driver In A Texas Crash That Killed 13 People Was Texting, A Witness Says

Authorities respond to a deadly crash involving a van carrying church members and a pickup truck in northern Uvalde County, Texas, on Wednesday.

KABB/WOAI / Via AP

The driver of a pickup truck that collided with a church bus in Texas on Wednesday, killing 13 people, may have been texting in the moments leading up to the crash, according to a witness who was at the scene.

Jody Kuchler was driving with his girlfriend along US Highway 83, a rural stretch of highway about 75 miles west of San Antonio, when he witnessed a truck swerve erratically into oncoming traffic several times.

While his girlfriend filmed the truck on her phone, Kuchler made several calls to local sheriffs' departments to urge police to get the driver off the road.

"Somebody needs to get this guy off the road," Kuchler said, according to 911 audio obtained by KSAT. "He's going to hit somebody head on or he's going to kill his own damn self. Somebody needs to get this guy off the road."

In the aftermath of the accident, Kuchler said he spoke to the driver, who apologized and admitted that he had been texting while driving.

"He said, 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I was texting,'" Kuchler recalled. "I said, 'Son, do you know what you just did?'"

Federal and state investigators declined to comment on the account Friday. But officials with the National Board of Transportation Safety said that distracted driving would be among the issues considered as the agency investigates the causes of the accident. Texas does not have a statewide ban on texting while driving.

"We are in the early stages of this investigation," NTSB spokesman Terry Williams told BuzzFeed News. "Any distractions by either driver is part of our investigation." He estimated that the federal probe into the crash would take about a year to complete.

The bus had been carrying members of the First Baptist New Braunfels Church returning from a retreat at a nearby camp. Of the 14 passengers, 12 died at the scene, and another succumbed to their injuries Wednesday evening at a hospital. The sole survivor remains in critical condition at a hospital in San Antonio.

The driver of the pickup truck, who state officials identified as 20-year-old Jack Dillon Young, also remains hospitalized.

KABB/WOAI / Via AP

At a press conference Friday, Jennifer Morrison, the lead federal investigator, said that the bus was equipped with seat belts, and officials believed that "most, if not all passengers" were wearing them at the time of the crash.

The accident was one of the deadliest in recent memory in Texas, Lt. Johnny Hernandez, a spokesperson for the state's Department of Public Safety, told BuzzFeed News.

"It's a big investigation—this kind of accident doesn't happen every day," he said. He added that the state's probe is in its early stages, and that investigators had not yet had an opportunity to speak to Young.

On Thursday, First Baptist New Braunfels set up a relief fund for the victims' family members.

“We are so grateful for the compassionate outpouring of support and prayers we have received since the tragic bus crash in which we lost 13 of our beloved church members,” read a message posted to the church's Facebook page.

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Trump Held An Executive Order Signing Ceremony, Then Walked Away Without Signing Anything

“So, he didn’t sign them?” one puzzled reporter asked.

President Trump held an executive order signing ceremony in the Oval Office on Friday where he planned to sign two orders that he said would start a “great revival” of US manufacturing.

Andrew Harnik / AP

"Thank you everybody," he said, speaking from the podium. "You're going to be seeing some very, very strong results very, very quickly. Thank you very much."

Andrew Harnik / AP

A reporter then tried to ask the president about Michael Flynn, his former national security adviser who has offered to testify on the Trump campaign's ties with Russia in return for immunity from prosecution.

Andrew Harnik / AP

But Trump was in no mood to answer questions and bolted for the door.

Andrew Harnik / AP

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Immigration Crackdowns Will Happen Despite Sanctuary Policies, Justice Officials Vow

Richard Drew / AP

Local jurisdictions that don't fully cooperate with immigration officials may see more enforcement operations in public places, despite the outcry, according to a recent letter from Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly.

Such enforcement operations typically take place at the residences or places of employment of targeted individuals, and usually during predawn hours. But in a joint letter to California's Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye on Thursday, Sessions and Kelly said local officials can expect more arrests in public places if they refuse to cooperate with immigration officers.

"Some jurisdictions, including the state of California and many of its largest counties and cities, have enacted statutes and ordinances designed to specifically prohibit or hinder ICE from enforcing immigration law by prohibiting communication with ICE, and denying requests by ICE officers and agents to enter prisons and jails to make arrests," the letter states. "As a result, ICE officers and agents are required to locate and arrest these aliens in public places."

The letter was in response to Cantil-Sakauye's request that ICE agents stop "stalking" courthouses to arrest people suspected of being in the US illegally. She cited concerns that victims and witnesses involved in non-immigration cases could begin to avoid courthouses for fear of being detained over their immigration status.

The letter from Sessions and Kelly appears to confirm at least some of the concerns of officials across the US who have seen increased activity by ICE agents on their streets after declaring, or reaffirming, their status as sanctuary jurisdictions.

Sanctuary cities don't fully cooperate with immigration authorities to varying degrees — some don't allow ICE agents in their jails, other don't honor federal detention requests. Many bar local authorities from inquiring about someone's status.

In California, counties are not allowed to hold inmates past the term of their sentence or after they post bond. Though some counties notify ICE officials when undocumented immigrants will be released, they are not allowed to hold them past that time despite federal requests.

Handout . / Reuters

Some cities have doubled-down on their sanctuary policies in response to President Trump and his recent executive orders making practically everyone living in the US a priority for deportation. Sessions has also threatened to cut federal funding to uncooperative cities in retaliation.

California is currently considering a bill that would effectively impose some sanctuary policies statewide, such as limiting contact between local jurisdictions and ICE. But even before the joint letter from Sessions and Kelly, some law enforcement agencies were told they could expect more immigration enforcement on the streets.

"We were told if we were to do that, if the Senate bill were to pass, [ICE] would be in our streets looking for the same people in a residential area," Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood, who serves as president of the California State Sheriffs' Association, told BuzzFeed News.

Youngblood said he was also told that if ICE agents come across other undocumented immigrants while looking for a specific individual in those operations, those people would also be taken into custody.

"They could be deported as well," he said.

The flurry and fear of ICE raids in immigrant communities has also prompted Latino congressional leaders to reach out to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus on Thursday sent a letter asking Sessions and Kelly to address reports that ICE was specifically targeting sanctuary cities as a way to compel them to cooperate.

ICE officials would not comment on the letter, but told BuzzFeed News that any suggestion that the raids were meant to pressure sanctuary cities was false.

"The claim that ICE is increasing actions in 'sanctuary cities' to pressure them is inaccurate," David Lapan, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security, told BuzzFeed News. "ICE conducts targeted enforcement operations throughout the country based on investigative leads and intelligence."

Some, however, remain unconvinced.

A federal judge in Texas earlier this month said in court that he was told ICE would be conducting "a big operation" in Travis County as a result of the sheriff's new policy to not comply with ICE detention requests.

"My understanding is, one of the reasons that happened was because the meetings that occurred with the field office director and the sheriff didn't go very well," US Magistrate Judge Andrew Austin told the agent.

In Oregon, where the governor has recently signed an executive order that prohibits all state agencies from cooperating with ICE officials, elected officials said they too have seen more ICE operations.

Oregon State Rep. Teresa Alonso León has since filed a Freedom of Information Act request with DHS, asking for documents to find out how the agency was deciding which operations to undertake.

"Our families in general are now afraid to go to school, church, work," she told BuzzFeed News. "Some of our community members agree that perhaps they are targeting Oregon because we are a sanctuary state, but we don't know that for a fact."

LINK: More Cities Are Becoming Sanctuary Cities Despite Trump's Crackdown

LINK: More Cities Are Becoming Sanctuary Cities Despite Trump's Crackdown

LINK: Federal Judge Says Immigration Raids Were In Retaliation For Sheriff’s Sanctuary Policies

LINK: California’s Chief Justice Wants Immigration Agents To Stop “Stalking” Courthouses

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A 6-Year-Old Arizona Girl Who Went Missing In 2012 Has Been Found Dead

Tucson News Now / Via Twitter: @TucsonNewsNow

The body of Isabel Celis, the 6-year-old Tucson, Arizona, girl who went missing from her bedroom in 2012, was found in a rural area nearly five years after she vanished, authorities announced Friday.

Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus said investigators found human remains in a remote area of Pima County. Portions of the remains were sent to a lab in Virginia that confirmed they belonged to Celis.

Isabel Celis

Tucson PD

“Although this confirmation may bring some degree of closure, of course it also ends the hope of bringing Isabel home safely to her family,” Magnus told reporters at a press conference. “The death of any child is a loss to the family and to our entire community.”

Magnus said police were not in the area where Celis’ body was found by happenstance, but declined to give details about what led them there or if there were any suspects.

“The Tucson Police Department will continue to actively pursue those responsible for any kind of involvement in Isabel’s death and disappearance,” Magnus said. “This is a very important step in the case.”

An alley path behind the street where Celis went missing from her home on April 22, 2012.

Terry Tang / AP

Police have reviewed and followed up on more than 2,200 leads since Celis was reported missing on the morning of April 21, 2012, a case that garnered national attention.

The family told police they believed Celis was taken from her bedroom in the middle of the night. In a 911 call, her brother told police a window screen appeared to have been taken off and that no one heard anything.

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Gilbert Baker, Creator Of The Iconic Rainbow Flag, Has Died

Spencer Platt / Getty Images

Gilbert Baker, the man who created the rainbow flag — an iconic symbol of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender movement — died Thursday. He was 65.

Baker's death was announced on Twitter by activist and author Cleve Jones, who called him his "dearest friend in the world."

"Gilbert gave the world the Rainbow Flag; he gave me forty years of love and friendship. I can't stop crying. I love you forever Gilbert Baker," Jones wrote on Facebook.

Baker was born in Kansas in 1951 and served in the US Army from 1970-72 stationed in San Francisco. After he was honorably discharged, he stayed in San Francisco and taught himself to sew. During the beginning of the gay liberation movement, Baker was tasked by friend Harvey Milk with making banners for gay and anti-war street protests.

Milk rode under the first rainbow flags that Baker made on June 25, 1978, at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade. That same year, Milk was elected to office, but assassinated a short time later.

On his website, Baker credited Milk with “inspiring his work with the message of hope.” He recreated the banners and flags for the Oscar-nominated film Milk, which starred Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, and Emile Hirsch.

Baker continued his designs and worked for the Paramount Flag Company in San Francisco, creating flamboyant window displays. His clients included then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein, the presidents of France, Venezuela, and the Philippines, as well as the King of Spain, according to his website.

He later moved to New York City and created a mile-long rainbow flag for the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots of 1969.

The GLBT Historical Society asked that rainbow flags around the world be lowered to half mast in Baker's memory.

Meanwhile, tributes to Baker flooded social media thanking him for his contributions.

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Trump Declared April Sexual Assault Awareness Month And People Were Like "Sorry, What?"

“No one has done more to increase awareness of sexual assault than Donald J. Trump.”

On Friday, President Donald Trump, who has been accused of sexual assault by multiple women and was once recorded discussing grabbing women "by the pussy," proclaimed April as National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.

In fact, April has been proclaimed National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month every year starting with President Obama in 2009.

"We dedicate each April to raising awareness about sexual abuse and recommitting ourselves to fighting it," the president said in a White House statement. "Women, children, and men have inherent dignity that should never be violated."

Mark Wilson / Getty Images

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Amber Heard Says A Body Double Filmed "Pornographic" Movie Scenes Without Her Consent

Mario Anzuoni / Reuters

Amber Heard is accusing a production company of using a body double without her permission to make it appear as if she acted in “pornographic” nude scenes in the upcoming movie London Fields.

Heard made the accusations in a counterclaim she filed Thursday in the heavily litigated movie based on Martin Amis’s book. The film also stars Billy Bob Thornton, Jim Sturgess, Cara Delevingne, and ex-husband Johnny Depp.

Heard herself was sued for $40 million for alleged breach of contract as part of one of three lawsuits filed over the movie. The film’s UK-based production company, Nicola Six Limited, claims Heard failed to perform certain acting services, breached her confidentiality obligation, failed to comply with her publicity contract for promoting the film, and refused to participate in post production work.

Heard responded to the lawsuit by filing her counterclaim, alleging she is the victim of a “sexploitive couple” — producer Christopher Hanley and his wife, Roberta, who worked on the film’s script — and accusing them of secretly filming sexual images and vulgar scenes with a body double without her knowledge, according to the The Hollywood Reporter.

She also claims her contract included restrictions on nude and sex scenes in the movie.

London Fields / Via Facebook: pg

Nicola's attorney, Matthew Rosengart, called Heard's complaint "a work of fiction, worthy of Ms. Heard’s London Fields character."

"It is nothing more than a meritless smear tactic designed to distract from her own misconduct," Rosengart added in a statement to BuzzFeed News on Friday.

During filming, the production company also accused Heard and the film’s director, Matthew Cullen, of making unauthorized changes to the screenplay and taking out provocative scenes that contained nudity without permission. Heard also allegedly refused to comply with contractual requirements to act in scenes requiring nudity.

Cullen was eventually fired and Nicola Six Limited finished the movie without him, despite it being late and $2 million over budget, according to court filings.

It was during that time, Heard claims, that Nicola Six Limited secretly inserted the additional nude scenes made with a body double.

“The body double footage included an explicit pornographic sex scene that Heard would never have agreed to do herself," according to Heard’s cross complaint, which was obtained by THR. "The body double footage was designed and intended to leave anyone who saw the images with the distinct impression that it was Heard."

The pornographic body double scenes involve a female police officer, a woman detainee on the hood of a car, and a police baton, THR reported.

Neither Heard's representative, nor her attorney, immediately responded to BuzzFeed News' requests for comment.

Heard and Depp settled their divorce out of court in August after she accused the Pirates of the Caribbean star of hitting her during a fight at their apartment in Los Angeles. Police, however, found no evidence of a crime and Depp denied the allegations.

LINK: Amber Heard Drops Depp Abuse Allegations, Will Donate Divorce Money To Charity

LINK: Amber Heard Gives Her $7 Million Divorce Settlement To Charity

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Louisiana Officer Sentenced To 40 Years In Prison For Fatal Shooting Of 6-Year-Old Boy

Gerald Herbert / AP

A Louisiana officer was sentenced to 40 years in prison for shooting into a car and killing a 6-year-old autistic boy, officials said.

Derrick Stafford was convicted last week in the Nov. 2015 shooting and, on Friday, was convicted to 40 years for manslaughter, the Louisiana Attorney General's office told BuzzFeed News. He was also sentenced to 15 years for attempted manslaughter in the fatal shooting.

Via Facebook

Six-year-old Jeremy Mardis was killed and his father, Christopher Few, was wounded. Mardis was shot five times when the marshals opened fire, including fatally in the head and chest.

Stafford and his partner, Norris Greenhouse Jr., fired at least 18 times into the vehicle.

The body camera of another officer at the scene, Marksville Police Sgt. Kenneth Parnell, who did not open fire, showed that Few had raised his hands when the two marshals started firing.

Louisiana State Police Col. Michael Edmonson, after announcing the arrest of the two marshals, described the footage of the shooting as one of "the most disturbing things I have ever seen."

Parnell later told investigators he did not shoot because he didn't fear for his life.

Stafford was on duty as a Marksville city marshal at the time of the shooting.

Authorities said the shooting occurred at the end of a pursuit, but no weapon was found in or near Few's car.

LINK: Officer Who Witnessed City Marshals Fatally Shooting 6-Year-Old Boy Said He Didn’t Fear For His Life

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New York City Will Close The Notorious Rikers Island Jail

But it will take a decade to shutter the facility, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Friday that he backed a plan to close the notorious Rikers Island jail complex in 10 years, an effort aimed to end the era of "mass incarceration."

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The mayor announced the move based on the recommendations of a 97-page report by an independent commission led by by former New York state Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman.

The commission recommended moving inmates off Rikers Island and into a series of smaller jails across New York City's five boroughs, the New York Times reported.

video-cdn.buzzfeed.com

The mayor on Friday called Rikers Island an "expression of a national problem."

"The mass incarceration era did not begin in New York City, but it’s going to end here," he tweeted.

Seth Wenig / AP

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Twitter Killed The Egg Avatar And People Are Not Happy

“Twitter To Replace Egg Avatar With Confederate Flag.”

Accounts with egg profile pictures had come to be associated with troll accounts, online harassment, and as recently as yesterday, with FBI director James Comey.

Twitter acknowledged that one of the reasons it killed the egg was to counter its association with "negative behavior."

"We’ve noticed patterns of behavior with accounts that are created only to harass others – often they don’t take the time to personalize their accounts," the company said. "This has created an association between the default egg profile photo and negative behavior, which isn’t fair to people who are still new to Twitter and haven’t yet personalized their profile photo."

Twitter

But people on Twitter were pissed off that Twitter thought killing the egg would curb online harassment from troll accounts.

Twitter: @BridgetGelms

They rolled their eyes at Twitter's apparent solution to complaints of online abuse.

Twitter: @H_L_Thompson

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Michael Flynn's Lawyer Once Called Trump A "Manchurian Candidate" And Questioned His Russian Ties

Robert Kelner said Thursday the case against Flynn is “outrageous” and based on “unfounded allegations.”

Kelner at the 2012 Republican National Convention.

Twitter / Via Twitter: @robkelner

The attorney now representing former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn once described Donald Trump as a "Manchurian Candidate", questioned his ties to Vladimir Putin, and queried his unwillingness to release his tax returns.

Attorney Robert Kelner's name was thrust into national news on Thursday night when he released a statement on behalf of Flynn stating that his client was prepared to testify in exchange for immunity from prosecution because of what he said was a "highly politicized, witch hunt environment."

"Notwithstanding [Flynn's] life of national service, the media are awash with unfounded allegations, outrageous claims of treason, and vicious innuendo directed against him," Kelner wrote. "He is now the target of unsubstantiated public demands by Members of Congress and other political critics that he be criminally investigated."

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Kelner was a vocal anti-Trump Republican. In October, during an interview with BuzzFeed News, he criticized the then-GOP candidate for saying the election would be rigged, calling the remarks "a dangerous and unprecedented attack on our democratic institutions."

"The only real threat to this election is the reported effort by Russian intelligence services to hack election systems, which is something that Trump himself has failed to condemn," Kelner said.

Kelner was also especially critical of his client's former boss across multiple tweets during the 2016 campaign, once calling him "a Bill Clinton-managed mole sent to infiltrate and destroy the GOP from within."

"Donald Trump is not a Republican. Not a conservative. And he should be condemned for his un-American comments categorically by the GOP," he wrote in December 2015.

As the campaign progressed, Kelner's tweets continued to criticize Trump.

"All #Trump surrogates: 'Donald Trump is the kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being I have ever known.' #ManchurianCandidate," he wrote on June 7, alluding to the famous novel and film about a US politician who is a subversive agent for a foreign power.

"Spy novel script: Russia hacks #DNC for @realDonaldTrump oppo. Trump says nice things about #Putin. Hmmm," he tweeted in June 2016.

In August 2016, when Trump made a rare public statement of regret for sometimes saying "the wrong thing," Kelner suggested Trump had "gone rogue" from his Moscow-affiliated "controllers."

"Moscow Centre trying hard to re-establish radio contact with Trump's controllers tonight. His quasi-apology suggests he's gone rogue," he wrote in August.

Twitter: @robkelner

He has also repeatedly pointed to favorable news coverage of Trump in the Russian press.

"Uh oh. Kremlin news service turning on their man Trump tonight. Someone in Moscow is not happy with the pivot," he wrote in August.

"Russian news service seemingly turning negative on Trump for the first time. Subtle, but it's there. Interesting," he wrote two days after the January inauguration.

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This Mom Got A Tattoo Of Her Daughter As Nefertiti And It's Seriously Gorg

“She chose me because ‘she doesn’t know anyone prettier.’”

This is Rhandi Purnell and her mom, Lonnie Taylor. Purnell told BuzzFeed News that she and her mom "have always had a close relationship."

"She's a incredible mother but also an amazing friend," Purnell said. "She is my greatest supporter and she's always been right by my side. We can talk about any and everything together, we can like we're best friends."

Rhandi Purnell

About 8 months ago, Taylor decided to get another tattoo featuring the Egyptian queen Nefertiti. Her daughter explained her mom has long been interested by Nefertiti's story and legacy.

Rhandi Purnell

"In college, a Egyptian art collector stopped [Taylor] and told her that she looked like she could be a member of that royal family. From then on, he educated her on more than the surface levels and spoke a lot about Nefertiti. She became very interested and it stayed with her," Purnell explained.

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A Controversial Campus Rape Bill Is Really, Really Dead

Student activists protested against the Georgia campus rape bill

Courtesy of S. Daniel Carter / BuzzFeed News

The Georgia state senate on Thursday shot down an attempt to ram through a controversial campus rape bill that had no support from victim advocacy groups and was aimed at protecting accused rapists.

The legislation would’ve required college officials in the state to report all felony-level sexual assaults to cops, whether or not a victim wanted to file a police report. The bill also limited how universities could discipline students accused of sexual assault. If any of this conflicted with federal requirements, the bill instructed Georgia colleges to ignore the opinion of US government agencies that enforce federal law.

State Rep. Earl Ehrhart, a long-serving Republican from Powder Springs, Georgia, sponsored the bill because he believed too many male students were being falsely accused of sexual assault and treated unfairly by their schools.

The bill passed on a party-line vote in the Georgia House, but the senate judiciary committee then voted unanimously to table it after students, sexual assault victims’ advocacy groups, and private colleges lobbied against the proposal. Public colleges, whose purse strings are controlled by Ehrhart — chairman of the appropriations subcommittee on higher education — didn’t take a stand on the bill.

On Tuesday night, Ehrhart gutted SB 71, an unrelated bill dealing with health savings accounts sponsored by the head of the state Senate Judiciary Committee, and replaced it with the language of his campus rape legislation. The House then approved SB 71 and sent it back to the Senate, which unanimously rejected it on Thursday afternoon.

“Without objection, the Senate has disagreed with the House,” said Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, a Republican who serves as senate president. He then tossed a small piece of paper in the air as senators applauded the vote.

Lt. Gov Casey Cagle

BuzzFeed News / Via Georgia Public Broadcasting

Late on Thursday night, the Senate declined to appoint any of its members to a conference committee that would have hashed out a deal to get the bill through at the last minute.

Thursday was the last day of the legislative session for 2017, meaning the rejection of the controversial proposal kills it for the year.

LINK: How A Controversial Campus Rape Bill Has Come Back From The Dead

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A Reporter Apparently Found The FBI Director's Secret Twitter And Instagram Accounts, And He's Not Even Mad

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday dropped a few details about his secret social media accounts, and that was just enough for a reporter to dig up what appear to be his Twitter and Instagram accounts.

But the FBI director, who said he treasures his privacy despite being the highest-profile law enforcement figure in the country, doesn't seem to be mad about getting doxxed.

FBI Director Comey's alleged Twitter account.

Gizmodo

Perhaps the head of the FBI was impressed by the quick sleuthing of Gizmodo reporter Ashley Feinberg, but hours after she published her story on the not-so-secret-anymore accounts, Comey's suspected Twitter account published its first tweet ever.

This.

Twitter / Via Twitter: @projectexile7

Not only does the tweet seem to applaud Feinberg's detective work, but it also included a link to jobs available at the FBI.

But that's not all.

Comey's suspected Instagram account — which was followed by just 9 people and amazingly contained more than 3,000 posts — deleted every picture and left only this gem behind, tagging Feinberg in the process.

Instagram: @reinholdniebuhr

Of course, minutes after Feinberg's story was published the two accounts were flooded with followers.

The Twitter account racked up more than 8,000 followers Wednesday before suddenly protecting its tweets, and the more than 3,000 posts on Instagram were deleted but for the one video.

So do the accounts belong to the FBI director?

The FBI would not comment on Gizmodo's story.

It also did not respond to BuzzFeed News requests for comment on whether Comey was applauding Feinberg's find.

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Mike Flynn Is Seeking Immunity For Testifying On Alleged Trump Ties To Russia

Win Mcnamee / Getty Images

Former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn is seeking assurances that he won't face "unfair prosecution" in exchange for testifying about the Trump campaign's ties to Russia, his attorney said Thursday.

Flynn has reportedly made offers to the FBI and members of Congress to testify in exchange for immunity, but so far, no one has taken him up on it, the Wall Street Journal first reported.

The House and Senate intelligence committees are currently investigating whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia to try to sway the US presidential election.

The retired general, who began advising the Trump campaign in 2015, resigned from his role as national security adviser after revelations that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about a meeting he had with a Russian ambassador.

Flynn's lawyer confirmed that the retired general had been in talks about an immunity deal, but he declined to discuss details.

"General Flynn certainly has a story to tell, and he very much wants to tell it, should the circumstances permit," attorney Robert Kelner said in a statement.

Kelner added that Flynn was currently facing unfounded accusations of criminal wrongdoing, some going as far as treason.

"No reasonable person, who has the benefit of advice from counsel, would submit to questioning in such a highly politicized, witch hunt environment without assurances against unfair prosecution," Kelner said.

Flynn himself had business ties to Russia outside of the Trump campaign, earning thousands of dollars for speaking engagements.

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An Airport Security Officer Shot And Killed A Pet Dog In Hawaii

Officials said the incident was under investigation, and the dog’s owner said he didn’t do anything to deserve being shot.

A security officer shot and killed a pet dog at the Honolulu International Airport on Tuesday, sparking an investigation.

Marco Garcia / AP

Leisha Ramos, the owner of 2-year-old Kai’ele, told the Star Advertiser the pit bull got loose in a vehicle holding area, but he did not act aggressively.

Instagram: @lkmr

Ramos and her family arrived at the Honolulu airport Tuesday evening, a move for them from Hawaii's Big Island. Her boyfriend picked up Kai'ele from the crating area, took him out of his kennel, and tied him to a tree while they loaded their luggage into their truck, they told KHON 2.

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This Controversial Texas Mayor Says She Is Joining The Trump Administration

Former Gen. Michael Flynn and Irving Mayor Beth Van Duyne at Trump Tower in 2016.

Timothy A. Clary / AFP / Getty Images

The mayor of Irving, Texas, who has expressed belief that Sharia law is putting US laws in jeopardy, has reportedly said she will be leaving her position to work in the Trump administration.

At a luncheon on Thursday, Beth Van Duyne told a gathering of 300 people that she would be able to make an official announcement next week, The Dallas Morning News reported.

"I keep saying next week because I've been told the paperwork is going to be done next week," Van Duyne reportedly said. "But next week I'll actually be able to make an announcement."

Van Duyne was spotted at Trump Tower in New York days after the November presidential election. In February, she announced that she would not be seeking a third term as mayor, and told The Dallas Morning News she is "looking at some opportunities."

The White House and Van Duyne's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment from BuzzFeed News.

Van Duyne, who was first elected mayor of the Dallas suburb in 2011, gained national prominence in February 2015 after she responded on Facebook to reports that Sharia law was taking hold in parts of Texas.

"Sharia Law Court was NOT approved or enacted by the City of Irving," Van Duyne wrote. "Our nation cannot be so overly sensitive in defending other cultures that we stop protecting our own." Van Duyne later told former Fox News host Glenn Beck that a local Muslim religious leader was "bypassing American courts."

The "court" Van Duyne was referring to was "a mediation panel comprised of arbitrators settling civil disputes using Sharia law in non-binding decisions," the Washington Post reported. "Similar religious tribunals have existed for decades in the American Jewish and American Christian faith communities to resolve disputes, most especially within families,” an Islamic Center of Irving statement read at the time of the controversy.

Sharia — a religious code of conduct, no different than those contained in other Abrahamic religions — has often been used as a fear-inducing term associated with anti-Western beliefs in recent years. Sharia is similar to canon law of the Catholic Church or the requirement that those who follow Judaism eat kosher foods.

In the following years, the mosque was the site of a number of protests by armed militias and the Ku Klux Klan.

Van Duyne is part of a small but growing number of Americans and politicians who believe in an unfounded conspiracy theory based on no evidence that Muslims in America are trying to subvert the US Constitution. As a result, 13 states have introduced anti-foreign law bills in 2017, and nine states already have a law on the books. Many advocates see these bills and those like it, as unnecessary and redundant because their provisions violate the Constitution of the United States. Van Duyne urged the Irving city council to back a similar state bill in 2015.

Van Duyne made headlines again in November 2015 when she posted on Facebook her support for the decision to arrest Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old student who brought a homemade clock to his high school that teachers suspected could be a "hoax bomb."

"I do not fault the school or the police for looking into what they saw as a potential threat," she wrote. "As a parent, I agree that if this happened to my child I would be very upset."

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SpaceX Is About To Relaunch A Rocket Into Space For The First Time

SpaceX is attempting to make history (again) by relaunching a Falcon 9 rocket back into space Thursday.

Nasa / Getty Images

If at first you do succeed, try, try again. That's what SpaceX is attempting with its Falcon 9 rocket relaunch on Thursday night, marking the industry's first attempt at shooting a used rocket back into space.

SpaceX made history in 2012 when the Falcon 9 successfully delivered cargo to the International Space Station, the first commercial company to do so.

Musk's company has successfully landed eight out of 13 rocket attempts since December 2015, and if Thursday's launch goes off with a bang, it could be a financial game changer for the aerospace industry.

"If one can figure out how to effectively reuse rockets just like airplanes, the cost of access to space will be reduced by as much as a factor of a hundred," Musk has said, meaning his company could eventually offer launches at a 30% discount.

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People Are Debating Whether Married Men Can Eat Alone With Other Women After This Pence Story

The revelation that the vice president won’t dine alone with other women has sparked heated discussion on social media.

The revelation that Vice President Mike Pence never eats alone with a woman other than his wife has sparked an interesting and rather heated debate on social media.

According to a recent Washington Post profile of Karen Pence, the vice president told the Hill in 2002 that he never eats alone with any woman but his wife. He also reportedly told the Hill that he wouldn't attend events that served alcohol without his wife.

The Post profile characterized Karen Pence as a strong influence in her husband's political career and an integral part of the Trump campaign.

The story also explored the couple's evangelical Christian faith and its impact on their personal and political lives.

Alex Brandon / AP

As writer Laura Turner explained in a Twitter thread, Pence was following an evangelical Christian practice known as "the Billy Graham Rule."

In 1948, renowned American evangelist Billy Graham vowed never to be alone with another woman other than his wife to avoid even the appearance of an inappropriate relationship and to protect his marriage, according to a Christianity Today article.

Turner acknowledged that the Billy Graham rule came "from a good place," but she criticized its modern day interpretation, saying it was "dehumanizing" and reduced women "to sexual temptations."

Twitter: @lkoturner

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Trump Will Meet China's President Xi At Mar-A-Lago Next Week

AFP / Getty Images

The first meeting between President Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping has officially been scheduled for April 6- and 7 at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, the White House said on Thursday morning,

In a statement, the Office of the Press Secretary said: "The two leaders will discuss global, regional, and bilateral issues of mutual concern. The President and the First Lady will also host President Xi and Madame Peng Liyuan at a dinner on the evening of April 6."

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang also confirmed the meeting during his daily briefing on Thursday, stating it would take place after Xi embarks on a state visit to Finland in the previous two days, according to Chinese state media.

The meeting comes amid uncertainty over the relationship between the world's second biggest economy and the Trump administration, with Trump repeatedly using anti-Beijing rhetoric on the campaign trail, and accusing China of unfair trade practices and of taking American jobs.

He has threatened to raise import taxes on Chinese goods, and declare the country a currency manipulator, although it is not clear whether he will follow through on either threat.

Other issues the two leaders are likely to discuss are North Korea's missile and nuclear weapons program, and Beijing's territorial claims in the South China Sea — an issue which caused strain between Xi and the Obama administration.

Trump angered China during his transition period after accepting a direct phone call with the president of Taiwan — a territory China claims as its own — contradicting Washington's long-held "One China" policy, which has been in place since 1979.

However, Trump reaffirmed the policy during a phone call with Xi in February.

The president's Mar-a-Lago resort also hosted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in February last month, where the two men shared dinner, played golf, and dealt with a security crisis in front of members of Trump's club following a North Korean missile launch.

Trump has regularly played golf at the resort since becoming president, but Xi is not known as a fan of the sport, according to the Associated Press.

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Mexican State Attorney General Arrested At US Border On Drug Trafficking Charges

Via Facebook: Lic.EdgarVeytia

A Mexican state attorney general was arrested at the US-Mexico border in San Diego on Monday on drug trafficking charges.

According to a grand jury indictment, Edgar Veytia is accused of trafficking heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana into the United States while he was acting as attorney general for the Mexican state of Nayarit.

The federal charges were filed March 2 but unsealed Wednesday in federal court. The Los Angeles Times reported Veytia was taken into custody Monday at the border in San Diego.

According to the indictment, Veytia is accused of conspiring to smuggle drugs dating back to January 2013, when he became attorney general.

The indictment claims Veytia also went by other names such as "Eepp," "Lic Veytia" and "Diablo."

Shortly after news of Veytia's arrest, Nayarit's governor, Roberto Sandoval Castañeda, released a statement on social media that he would "personally take care of security."

"I have been responsible for and will continue to be responsible of the most precious things we have, which is peace and security," he said. "We won't lower our guard."

Details of what led to Veytia's arrest were not immediately available. Officials with US Customs and Border Protection officials did not respond to BuzzFeed News requests for comment.

Veytia is expected to appear in federal court regarding being moved to New York to face the charges, the Times reported.

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North Carolina Lawmakers Have Reached A Deal To Repeal The Controversial Bathroom Law

Emery P. Dalesio / AP

North Carolina lawmakers announced Wednesday night they have reached an agreement to repeal a law that banned transgender people from certain bathrooms as well as cities' ability to pass laws against LGBT discrimination.

The agreement came after months of failure among lawmakers to reach a compromise on repealing the controversial law known as HB2, which had drawn national attention. State legislators announced the agreement late Wednesday, adding that a new bill would be voted on Thursday.

The new bill prohibits the state from regulating bathroom access. It also bans cities and local jurisdictions from passing laws "regulating private employment practices or regulating public accommodations" — such as the now-repealed law in Charlotte that aimed at banning discrimination of transgender people.

State Sen. Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore did not answer questions, but they said the bill would be considered by the state senate at 9:15 a.m., then move to the House to be passed by a concurrence motion. It wasn't immediately clear if the legislature would support the deal; previous compromises to repeal HB2 have failed.

If passed, the law would go into effect immediately and expire Dec. 1, 2020.

In a statement, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said he supports the compromise.

"It's not a perfect deal, but it repeals House Bill 2 and begins to repair our reputation," he said.

The vote will come just before a Thursday deadline reportedly set by the NCAA for North Carolina to address the issue or lose out on its chance to hold college championship games. The NCAA has said it will not hold events in locations where athletes and sports fans are discriminated against.

"If HB2 has not been resolved by that time, the NCAA will have no choice but to move forward without the North Carolina bids," Scott Dupree, executive director of the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance, said in a statement. "The NCAA has already delayed the bid review process once and has waited as long as it possibly can, and now it must finalize all championship site selections through spring of 2022."

An AP analysis determined that fallout from the bathroom law would cost the North Carolina economy $3.76 billion over the next dozen years.

Read the compromise bill here:

LINK: North Carolina Legislature Fails To Repeal Bathroom Law After Deal Breaks Down

LINK: North Carolina Poised To Repeal Bathroom Law

LINK: North Carolina Enacts Law To Allow LGBT Discrimination

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12 Killed When Church Bus Carrying Seniors Crashes

News 4 San Antonio‏ / Via Twitter: @News4SA

At least 12 members of a senior church group died Wednesday in Texas when their bus was involved in a head-on collision.

The bus collided with a pick up truck about 90 miles from San Antonio. It had been carrying members of the First Baptist New Braunfels Church who were returning from a retreat, according to a statement from the church.

The crash also left three people injured, the Associated Press reported.

This is a developing story. Check back later and follow @BuzzFeedNews on Twitter for updates.

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High Schoolers Fought Back Against A Sexist Prom Dress Code And Won

“As students, we’ve been trying to progress, and I think the school system should catch up as well.”

On Monday, these prom dress code flyers appeared on the walls of Stanton College Prep, a public high school in Jacksonville, Florida.

Three of the flyers showed prom dresses with low backs, plunging necklines, and a leg slit. They said, "Going to Stanton Prom? NO YOU'RE NOT."

A fourth poster shows a sleeveless gown, accompanied with text: "Going to Stanton Prom? YES YOU ARE. GOOD GIRL."

Supplied

Lily Willingham, an 18-year-old senior at the high school, found out about the posters in a group text with some friends — and she was livid.

"I saw it, and I was like, 'This is a joke. Are you kidding me?'" she told BuzzFeed News. "I was immediately so angry."

Willingham said dress code rules anger her due to their role in the over-sexualization of young women — and how those rules are rarely enforced for male students.

"I feel like that’s just demeaning — not just to women, but to men as well. They’re not animals, they can handle themselves!" she said.

"It’s a very outdated rule that needs to be updated," Willingham added. "As students, we’ve been trying to progress, and I think the school system should catch up as well."

Supplied

The prom is also on Saturday, and most students have already bought their dresses.

"When everyone else found out, they were all as equally angry as I was," she said.

By the end of the day, they'd all been ripped down. It is still not known who put them up.

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Ivanka Trump Is Taking An Official Job At Her Father's White House

Pool / Getty Images

Ivanka Trump is moving from her informal role as first daughter to a formal job within the White House.

Trump's new job, first reported by the New York Times, comes after she received an office at the White House, as well as access to classified information, last week. Her new title will be assistant to the president.

In a statement, Trump said she was taking the job without pay after concerns about how she was using her influence in the White House.

"I have heard the concerns some have with my advising the president in my personal capacity while voluntarily complying with all ethics rules and I will instead serve as an unpaid employee in the White House Office, subject to all of the same rules as other federal employees,” she said in a statement.

A White House statement added that formalizing her role showed her commitment to following ethics guidelines.

"We are pleased that Ivanka Trump has chosen to take this step in her unprecedented role as First Daughter and in support of the President. Ivanka's service as an unpaid employee furthers our commitment to ethics, transparency, and compliance and affords her increased opportunities to lead initiatives driving real policy benefits for the American public that would not have been available to her previously," the statement said.

Jim Watson / AFP / Getty Images

During the 2016 campaign, Trump called on government to support working women through paid maternal leave and subsidized child care. She and husband Jared Kushner moved their family to Washington, DC, after Donald Trump's election and she stepped down from her position in the Trump organization.

Kushner is also a senior adviser in the White House.

A law prohibits nepotism within the Cabinet or federal agencies, but a judge ruled it does not apply to White House staff.

LINK: Don’t Cry For Ivanka — Fear Her

LINK: Ivanka Trump Is Getting An Office In The White House

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This Teen Trolled A Student Athlete On Tinder Using A Meme And It's Epically Hilarious

The meme is real, y’all.

She told BuzzFeed News she downloaded the dating app about two months ago at the urging of a friend.

"I started using it not for the purpose of finding my soulmate, but instead to basically just joke around with people and to be funny," she said.

Recently, she was scrolling through Tinder when she noticed a guy in her area who described himself as a "student athlete." She couldn't resist joking with him because of the whole student athlete meme.

"I got the idea to say what I said from Twitter actually, from seeing all the tweets and memes about student athletes that are currently going around," she said.

Brooke Beissel

So she tried out the meme on a ~real~ student athlete. And he seemed to dig it!

Brooke said she talked with him a bit more before unmatching with him, but he didn't get the joke.

"I was thrown off that he gave me such a normal response to what I said that I had to ask him if he's seen any of the student athlete tweets, which he told me he hadn't seen them," she said.

Brooke Beissel

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A Missing Man Was Found Dead Inside A Giant Python

WARNING: This post contains disturbing images.

The body of a missing 25 year-old man has been found inside the stomach of a giant reticulated python in Indonesia.

A 21-foot long reticulated python in Indonesia in 2003.

Str / AP

The victim, named Akbar, disappeared Sunday after leaving his home in Salubiro village, West Sulawesi, to harvest palm oil.

Police organized a search party after he was reported missing on Monday and eventually discovered an enormous, engorged 23-foot (7-meter) python near Akbar's family's palm grove, BBC Indonesia reported.

"People had heard cries from the palm grove the night before Akbar was found in the snake's stomach," Salubiro village secretary Junaedi told Jakarta Post. "When the snake was captured, the boots Akbar was wearing were clearly visible in the stomach of the snake. Resident[s] cut open the belly of the snake and Akbar was lifeless."

Junaedi said that a wound found on the victim's back indicates that Akbar was probably ambushed from behind.

A graphic eyewitness video of the snake being cut open to reveal Akbar's body was posted on YouTube by Indonesian media outlet Tribun Timur.

West Sulawesi Police / Via youtube.com

Reticulated pythons are the longest snakes in the world and among the heaviest. They are common throughout southeast Asia and typically feed on small to medium-sized animals, such as monkeys, boar, and wild dogs.

The snakes are nonvenomous constrictors and attack by biting their prey and suffocating it to death, before swallowing it whole.

Reticulated python attacks on humans are very rare. The last python-caused fatality in Indonesia was in 2013, when a security guard at a Bali resort was strangled while trying to remove the snake from the area.

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